Calendar survey results and comments - Calgary Board of ... · summer weather in Calgary is short enough as it is, please give us that last long weekend before the kids have to start

Calendar survey results and comments

Below you will find all comments provided in the survey as they were written and sorted by question. Comments have been edited to ensure anonymity. We also edited or omitted abusive, discriminatory and otherwise inappropriate comments. Question 1: I am responding as a: -Parent/guardian of a CBE student 85.86% -CBE student .95% -CBE staff member 12.65% -Community member .54% Question 2: Labour Day shifts between the first and second weeks of September, depending on the calendar. When Labour Day falls in the second week of September, the first day of school must be before Labour Day to ensure we meet the required amount of instructional time. When Labour Day is in the first week of September, I prefer: -The first day of school is before Labour Day 9.88% -The first day of school is after Labour day 77.79% -No preference 12.34% Schools should be started in last week of August; Extra days should

be compensated with longer spring break So many students end up missing the beginning of school when we

start before Labour Day. It's hard to get a real start with your class. having a day or two of school before a long weekend is disruptive to

end of summer plans Taking attendance it is noticeable that if it is before labour day then

holidays are still going. After attendance is better. It makes things easier to plan for the summer. Some students are still on vacation Longer summer season is always welcome! Makes more sense to start school after labour day then can get right

into learning Preference with the 3 teacher days before Labour Day and the first

instructional day after Labour Day It is difficult for families to begin school prior to Labour Day and many

students come "late" to school as a result of this and thus we do not usually "start" teaching until after LD anyways. It makes for inefficiencies as we have to catch late students up

Calendar survey results and comments Spring 2017

I would rather get the school year going. Being able to accommodate the number of instructional days is most

important to me. If students need to return to class the end of August (within the last 5 days) then that is agreeable to me.

it is usually very disruptive to summer holidays/trips when the first day falls before labour day; many children just don't show up.

I prefer modified calendars When Labour Day is as above, parents will just extend summer

holidays anyway. First day of school for STUDENTS after labour day, staff can start

before. My children start in Aug. This does not apply to us Attendance is typically lower when it is before a long holiday as people

extend their holidays. This often sets students up for failure as they miss conversations on expectations, classroom designations, social activities etc.

Students start school anytime after September 1. The summer holiday is already long enough, no need to add Labour

day To be clear by the "second week of September", do you mean years

when Labour Day falls on September 6th or 7th only? If school starts before Labour Day, it seems strange to have a few

days of school then a long weekend. It’s strange for them to start school for couple of days and then have a

long weekend. I find that it is hard for my daughter to return to a full week of school

after the holidays. Having a shortened week makes the transition smoother.

That first week back is so busy, a four day week would be much appreciated. Besides, we are back before the long weekend prepping for start up. I personally don't want to be back any earlier than we are.

Students should not begin school prior to Labour Day regardless of when it falls. Move non-instructional days to before the Labour Day week-end if needed or reduce the number of non-instructional days. Students in Ontario must attend 192 days of school per year and the NEVER start school before Labour Day.

summer weather in Calgary is short enough as it is, please give us that last long weekend before the kids have to start school

Some students do not return from holidays until after labour day. It is better to start with most students present.

Too many families are still on vacation for the Long weekend, including the holiday Monday, so beginning school prior to Labour Day means some students miss critical information at the beginning of the year.

Start school 4 days earlier and have a week break for Thanksgiving. Students should have a break to enjoy the fall season before winter sets in.

Summer is to short 6 weeks in the summer is not long enough, get rid of the modified school year.

We travel a lot and it is nice to not have to come back before the long

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weekend. Maximize the length of the summer break please! Attending before Labour Day Weekend is fine but preferably a start

date sometime in September opposed to August 30. In the case of Labour day falling in the second week, can we not make

up the day(s) later? School should always begin after labour day. I find it's good to get the administration things done before Labour day

so learning can commence immediately after. It is nice to have a couple short weeks to start the school year off it will be easy for little kids to start without early interruption Teachers can use days before labour day as PD day if needed. so many families are away until after Labour Day and the absence of

these children makes doing things before redundant when they need to be repeated again

Depends... If it is only one day of school then after.... When labour day is in the second week of September i also prefer

school to start after labour day. The additional school days can be achieved by reducing the non-instructional days or winter break.

Having the first day of school before the Labour Day break seems unproductive. To have the kids back for such a short time before a break seems disruptive.

I am on a modified calendar Longer summer break is always preferable to days off later in the year I think the first day of school should always be after Labour Day. I'd rather start the school year sooner and get extra time at Christmas,

Spring break or start summer break sooner September should have same # of learning days every year. Should be sept 1 no matter when labour day is When it is before we often have an increase in students missing those

first few days because families are away on holidays. We shouldn't start school just to take another quick break People who are on vacation later in the summer can take advantage

of this extra week and the child won't miss those important first days September to December is a long and exhausting stretch for staff. I

propose starting the school year 4 days earlier and taking a 1 week break at thanksgiving to reduce the burnout we experience in December.

The first week is tough after a two month break. A short week is preferred. This helps transitioning in to a normal schedule.

It makes no sense to start school and then immediately be off for a stat holiday.

I adamantly think the first day of school should not occur until September under any circumstances!

Many families take a last trip to camp etc up to labour day long wknd so having those days off is important.

Maximize uninterrupted school days This doesn't affect modified calendar schools. Take less non-instructional days instead of starting befor labour day After, no matter what, would be nice for consistency year to year for

vacationing families

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To make up the lost time, could be not increase the minutes kids are in class. And get rid of this 12:02 and 3: 13pm. and make it 8:30 to 12:00 and let the kids out at 3: 15 or 3:30.

Always after and I would like Winter break to mostly fall after new years

The labour day off from office gives parent prep day for the new school year.

I would even like to see the first day be the first day after labour day even if it does fall in the second week.

It's nice to go back for a short time then have a long weekend and then hit the ground running. Children are ready to go back.

Many families have booked their summer holidays to include Labour Day and students are back to school until after then anyway.

I LOVE when you start after!! If it did occur in the second week, could you look at starting the days

earlier or make them a bit longer to make up the number of instructional days

Please do everything to make sure school always starts after labor day

As long as it's not an August start, it doesn't matter. School board needs to realize teachers work a LOT less than most

other professions and child care is expensive, teachers need more time in the classroom teaching kids. Professional development days should be used at the end of the school year or during summer vacations.

If you're running out of instructional time, consider teaching a full day on Friday like the rest of Alberta. Working parents (your employer effectively) will thank you for being consistent.

I have always felt that it was pointless to have classes start and then another long weekend. Usually, there is no momentum for the class. I prefer if the first day of school is after Labour Day and we usually hit the ground running in such circumstances.

It is ridiculous to come back for 1 or 2 days and then have a long weekend. Families often use this for travel and miss the miss two days anyway.

It seems kind of silly to have a couple days of school, then a long weekend, but it's not a deal breaker

It was so much easier when I was growing up - school always started the day after Labour Day

Allows for longer summer break. it is nice for the kids to meet their teacher and friends and then have a

weekend to relax. I find this is good especially for younger kids to transition with less stress.

But first day of school should never be in Aug for traditional calendar When this occurs I find many families take a holiday and do not return

until after Labor Day regardless of whether school has started or not. I would prefer students to start as close to 1 Sep as possible. But if

Labour Day is 6 or 7 Sep, I would prefer school to start before Labour Day.

Needs to coincide with childcare options which usually stop on Aug

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31, 2017. Many parents have limited holiday days to cover the in between time of August 31 and the first day of school. I prefer after Labour Day, however, if there is too many days (i.e. 3-4 days or a week), between when Aug 31 and the first day after Labour day, it would be preferred that school start before Labour day.

start September, 1. This would rank near the top of my concerns. I would further qualify

that under no circumstances would the first day of school activities for any CBE students fall before Sept 1.

Always good to have a last long weekend before school starts I have a child on the modified calendar. If it's before labour day, a lot of kids will simply not show up because it

breaks up the long weekend. Technically it's the families own responsibility to catch up on whatever their kids missed, however in reality it will be the teachers who will be stuck having to take time away from learning to do the first day paperwork etc. for the kids who start school after labour day.

The mindset and attendance of students lacks engagement prior to Labour Day. Waste of time for students and teachers.

It lets the kids go and meet their teachers & peers and then can have a break to digest it

If the first day of school is before Labour Day then CBE is out of sync with schools in the rest of the province & country. It makes coordinating family summer vacations extra difficult when CBE is the only Canadian school district to start school before Labour Day.

It's fine to start school a few days before labour day if it does not take up too much of the last week of August as some students might still be away on summer vacation. School can start before labour day if the first day back is no earlier than August 28th.

Makes things easier for family vacations and just seems natural to have after labour day.

We are on the modified calendar so it does matter If we could lengthen spring break I would support starting before

Labour day It is too disruptive to have students go to school for only one or two

days before labour day. It wrecks labor day weekend plans if it is before Provides a nice end to summer and many students miss that first

week if it is before Labour Day Gives students and parents an intro back to school and new routine

but also a small break before the regular routine happens. It is especially nice after a summer of not being used to school routine and schedules.

It doesn't make sense to for the school to opened for 1 day or 2 days then close for 1 day then reopens

Always. Even if it lands in the second week of september. It is nice to have one last long weekend to be away Friday through

labour day If the first day of school is before Labour Day, then it will typically only

be one or two days before the holiday/weekend, so there isn't much

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value in that. Reduce the number of non-instructional days and always start school

after Labour Day. I like when the first week back is a short week, to "ease" into the

routine. Nice to get the first few days under our belt then have a long weekend. Regardless, should not start school till after labour day, as most

working parents tend to take summer vacation up to Labour day. It doesn't make sense to start school for only a couple of days and

immediately have a long weekend. That just encourages families to extend their vacations and skip the first few days of school.

I am very annoyed the years when school starts before labour day I really dislike the idea of students being asked to come back for just 2

days of school and then off for the Labour Day weekend. It seems like a very inefficient use of time/money for the CBE and families.

In my opinion, I think instructional time may be adjusted later on in a different month after September.

September We sometimes spend time before Labour Day visiting family, if I don't

have teaching responsibilities (I am currently a substitute teacher). Take away some of your PD days and extended long weekends. You

get more long weekends that I do and I know that the teaching staff are out of the school around noon as I watch them leave, not acceptable

As my kid school first day is mid of august I feel school should start at the regular time of year but end sooner We prefer after labour day, because if we get a chance to travel back

home it is very expensive. So we want to stay for longer. No brainer here, summer is the most important time in most children's

development. Plus lots of people get time off in the summer which makes it easier for low income parents to get child care from friends, family and loved ones.

Kids need more instructional time over the school year. Please increase the number of days in school.

I like a very short week the first week to ease the kids into school. To account for the short-fall of instructional time, CBE should consider

removing some PD days during the school year. Breaking for 3-days after school starts ends up confusing some younger children and breaks the rhythm/ flow of back to school routine.

Many working parents have labour day off and might plan to be away. The first day of school should always be after Labour Day, even in the

second week of September. You can cut back on holidays at other points during the year.

I would like to see a shift in the Traditional Calendar that will begin in August and end in May. Semester break for High Schools will be joined with Winter Break, meaning that Diploma Exams will be written in the first half of December and the last half of May. Summer vacation would then be June and July. It is absurd for high school students to be expected to write final exams a week after returning from a two-week vacation.

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Starting school on September 1st or the first weekday in September would be preferred for consistency

Often there are many families they do not return from holidays until that weekend and it feels like we are doing the start up all over again with so many students not in attendance.

Many parents do not return from their summer vacation until after Labor Day. This is important when school consider student counts and organization when returning from summer break.

often long weekend vacations are taken prior to the school year starting

The first day of school should always be after Labour Day Often little is accomplished when school opens only for a long

weekend to occur. There should only be one calendar that ALL of CBE follows. I would

prefer my child to be in a traditional calendar, but no schools in our area offer, so we don't even have that as an option.

I strongly dislike that my children already go back to school mid August.

More days in school the better, in this case! Don't interrupt summer break. would prefer if school were to start last week of august If school starts after Labour Day, this is more in line with the rest of

Canada which makes vacation planning and camp registration easier. Absenteeism in these crucial first days is higher when students are

expected to return before Labour Day. it's still summer vacation for many prior to and including Labour Day

long weekend. Best not to start the school year before then. I think school should start after Labour Day every year. So many people plan vacation for the long weekend. More kids would

be there if it were after weekend Just not before September 1st please. That seems cruel. ;) As a teacher for another school board, it would be great if CBE and

RVSD started at the same time because otherwise my children are just 'putting in time somewhere' while other school divisions are back at school.

no preference UNLESS the first day of school would be in August. In my opinion, school should begin in September, NOT August

When school starts before labour day, we do not attend as we are often out of province visiting family.

There are issues with child care the last week of August as camps are generally finished and it's difficult to take time off work.

I prefer School start September 1 I believe should take survey about the quality of education (study)

which needs too much improvement. Many parents are on holidays with their children up until this time. It

makes no sense to start before that date, to return and get more holidays.

Labour Day is always the 1st Monday of Sept, so you're asking whether the 1st day of school should be on a Friday (this should probably be included in the information for the question). The latest

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Labour day can be is Sept 7. Summer camp time slots usually include the Mon-Fri week before Labour Day, so having school start after Labour Day aligns with that.

Few things in the calendar are as irritating as it commencing before Labour Day. Summer is too short to cut it shorter!

I don't see any reason to make it a preference. The students should get maximum numbers of teaching days, as already they are having so many holidays and teachers are not able to pace it well . Further, when a substitute is there, the students are literally doing nothing or not getting any benefit of that session.

My children are on the modified calendar. I think using this year as an example it made sense for the first day to

be in the 2nd week. However if the 1st week was longer, say starting on the Tuesday or Wednesday then school should have started that first week. This year started on a Thursday, and I think "why bother" have 2 days of school then a 3 day weekend.

Family vacations often include labor day My children are on the modified school calendar so this does not really

apply for us. however my child is in year round which we do not prefer at all School should start in September, not August. It's been a family tradition for ours to celebrate on the long weekend

prior to starting school We sometimes vacation the last week in August and it is important for

us to have the long weekend to prepare for back to school. Having the first day of school prior to Labour Day disrupts the entire

week before Labour Day and impedes the ability for working parents to potentially find child care. Going back for a day or 2 and then being off 3 days does not support the transition for the kids either from my perspective.

I think its nice way to break back into school, with a short week. I believe we would be served well both as a teaching staff and for our

student body by going back mid-August. what does "the second week of sept" mean? ie. how many days does

there have to be in the previous week for it to count? The placement of start of school before or after labour day has an

enormous impact on the city and provincial economy tourism sector. There is a direct impact on seasonal employment levels for many Calgarians. This economic impact does not get shifted to other times during the year, rather it is lost forever. From a personal/family vacation scheduling perspective, starting school before labour day also has a major impact. My employer must maintain minimum staffing levels for each department and job function. When school starts before Labour Day, my employment schedule is exceedingly harder to coordinate due to the loss of 7-10 days of prime summer vacation time.

If the first day lands before Labour Day, I find some, not many, families disregard this and start school after the weekend anyway.

no preference as long as we ensure the required amount of instructional time is met. I do not like when school starts for only about

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2 days then there is a long weekends. I think a lot of parents would tend to skip a short week before a long weekend even if it is the first week of school

The first day of school should always start after labour day. When Labour Day falls in the second week, you should drop a non-instructional day elsewhere to ensure the required amount of instructional time is met.

Nice for kids to go 1 or 2 days back then get that long weekend. It is always nice to enjoy one last long weekend before school begins Your question makes no sense. Labour Day is, by definition, in the

first week of September (being the first Monday in September). It just makes sense to wait. there is always students absent so kids

that are present end up hearing all new year memos twice to accommodate

My child is in a modified calendar 2 of my 3 kids are in a charter school that starts in August so it's no

difference to me. we don't return to city until after LD. So many absents that time was

not well spent when we did, so now we don't. It's easier for planning vacation to know that we can have the long

labor day weekend as the end of our holiday. Having the first day of school prior to labor day prevents this.

Having the first day before Labour Day when there is sufficient instructional time to start after Labour Day creates challenges for vacation scheduling.

when labour day falls in the second week of September there should be 3 full days of school before labour day

My answer is dependent on what this would be around the end of the year. If the last day is still June 30th, there really is no preference. Although this is also assuming that we get a full summer off as sometimes it seems like the summer has been cut short.

Always My answer applies if September 1 is on a Wednesday or later. Where can I comment about "Spring" break? Please move this to

April. March is not spring in Calgary. The weather is terrible and travel difficult because it's so expensive.

Labor Day signals the end of summer break for many, including myself and my family. Always having school start after the Labor Day holiday is definitely preferred!

Might work if school starts Friday 1/2 day before Labour Day as long as busing is provided to meet new class, get schedule and settle in etc. before the long weekend. Kids can review and prepare mentally before they start on the Tues

Kids benefit from outside time just as much as school. Every day of summer with family is important for us.

Sometimes we like to squeeze the last moments out of August to fully appreciate summer.

Even when it falls on the second week of September I think it should be after too.

Would prefer it was always after labour day regardless.

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I prefer the modified calendar. In BC, school always starts the day after labour day. It's nice to always

have that consistency. Always prefer the first day after Labour Day. Summer family time is

planned around the summer long weekends. Would like to shift start and end dates of school year to the third or

fourth week in August through last half of May. My jr./sr. high children miss out on valuable camp experiences otherwise.

School should never start before Labour Day! I don't care when the holiday falls, instructional days before labour day are ridiculous! My kids will always miss these as we are away until the summer ends, which is LABOUR DAY!

Less Non-instructional days. Way too many of those. 2.5 hrs/day after school has been sufficient for many years prior to 2000's.

Mentally kids are ready and expecting to return to school in September, the alternate of waiting to start would mean they are going longer into September, exactly when kids and teachers are "done" with the year

The first day of school should *always* be after labour day. Disruptive as many families are still away and the the teachers are

repeating everything again after labour day. Nice for the kids to start then have a little break to ease into the new

schedule I want school to start in September not August When I was growing up, it didn't matter when Labour Day was, the first

day of school was always the Tuesday after Labour Day. Students are not spending enough time in class as it is. Quit trying to

shorten the year. my son's school has a modified calendar There are many families who are away for the long weekend so a lot

of children do not come to school until after the long weekend when school starts before

This should be set in stone! I also think it should be after labour day if it falls in the second week of

September; take fewer other days off to make up for the lost time I would prefer we have a set start date such as September 1

regardless of when it falls to make planning easier There is no point of going back to school for a couple of days then

taking another break. If only one or two days I prefer the first day of school is after labour

day. Please!!!!! Hate them going back for 2 days then the long weekend! My experience is most families View Labour Day as the last day of

summer and aren't in school mode until after. Our family is on vacation till after September long when it falls in the

first week of September My child starts in August so N/A to me It would be great if the first day of school could always be the day after

Labour Day, regardless of which week Labour Day falls.... We far prefer first day of school after Labour Day, gives more summer

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vacation options and we don't put the kids back in school only to have an immediate long weekend

I feel the first day of school should always be in September, not August as it was on at least one occasion.

I would prefer that no matter when labour day the children don't go back before labour day

Very important after labour day as this ends summer We are in a modified Calendar, therefore N/a to us Talking about elementary school (Grade1-6) doesn't matter

instructional time! don't see any due diligence in timing teacher spend at classroom.

That’s the last chance for a family weekend before getting back to school. Having the kids come back for 1 or 2 days has ruined a number of family vacations for us.

I believe it should always be after labour day regardless. If possible it's great when school doesn't start in the month of August

so no earlier than Sept 2 (for students) even when Labour Day falls in the second week of September, the

rest of the calendar can be adjusted to meet the required amount of instructional time.

Means an earlier to school in June Summers are so short lets enjoy as much as we can even if that

means a bit longer to the school day My work goes throughout the summer holidays and my break occurs

in the first week of September. It's my only chance to have time off with my child.

Many people go away that weekend and it becomes a challenge to get back. Also summer camps could run the week prior and provide more options for families

School should always start after labour day, regardless of when labour day falls.

Labour day is the last weekend to head out of town and enjoy the last little bit of summer.. usually with a few days tacked on before the weekend.

It is nice to maximize the long weekend in any last summer vacations before the school year.

More days learning more learned. If the first day of school is prior to labour day, then it becomes

pointless to start then since the kids will have a day off. So they go to school for a day or two and then have a day off.

I think if adding instructional days before Labour Day allows for an extended winter break (depending on dates the holidays fall) and to have Easter Monday off consistently every year, I would support this.

I do not want my child starting school in mid August I'd prefer that school begin as close to the beginning of September as

possible, even when Labour Day falls within the 2nd week of September.

It can be difficult to find summer camps for child care during the last week in August. The earlier the start the better!

It depends on if summer camps are available - as both parents work,

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the concern is whether there is childcare available in the week before labour day.

I wish school always started after Labour Day - even when Labour Day is in the second week.

This question seems to be oddly worded. Regardless the first day of school needs to be after Labour Day or may absences will be noted. It is a big part of many family holidays.

Please, please! Always after labour day. It makes the summer seem longer.

Our school is modified calendar so this has no bearing on us My daughter is on a modified Calendar, this does not apply to us when this happens add 1 minute of classtime each day, shouldnt be

that hard to catch up A day or 2 before, let's kids and teachers get through the organization

and then can get into their studies after the long weekend Going back to school for a couple of days to then have a long

weekend break doesn't make a lot of sense and doesn't help establish routines at home.

This makes child care more straight forward. It's a lot getting back into the grind of the school year. I see better

results from a slow introduction Relaxing after outings families go away for Labour Day long weekend so a lot take the Friday

before off The first day of school should ALWAYS be after labour day. There are

lots of ways to make up those couple of instructional days! Perhaps more of the Professional Development days could take place

before the Labour Day weekend. My children are on the modified calander so this will not affect us. My kids have a hard time with adjusting to starting school for a wk and

then getting a long weekend. September 1 should start date Need an 'other' category for answering. Labour Day is the first Mon of

Sept. I would suggest that if Aug 31 is Mon or Tues, then start school on Sept 1. If Aug 31 is W/R/F, then start after Labour Day. It really depends on how the days fall, in my opinion.

Prefer to meet the required time by shortening other vacations I believe first instructional day should be the Tuesday after Labour Day

in all cases. Most of parents are travelling. We have so few summer days...extend as much as we can! I think it makes more sense and is a "cleaner" start to the school year,

holidays are over and school has begun. It’s really silly to go back to school for a few days and have a long

weekend Insane to have what is actually a wasted day at school. Families do

not come back early if away to make the start. First day should be September 1 or the next monday after the 1st.

(Unless that is labour day, then Tuesday) I am currently in a modified school.

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If it starts before Labour Day, I would prefer it to be the full week before, therefor still allowing the long weekend.

If it's before labour day so many students aren't here yet anyways It doesn't affect us as my kids start in the middle of Aug, but if I had to

choose, then after. For modified calendar, the first day of school must be before labour

day. I greatly prefer modified, and think it is much better for the students.

Childcare becomes an issue if the school year does not begin near the beginning of the month.

It is nice to have the first couple days of school over with to allow for re-organization if necessary.

I am curious about attendance for those years when school starts before the long weekend and whether or not it's worth it to start before. The long weekend generally marks that transition between summer and school and I would imagine it's difficult to motivate students (and parents) to attend before then.

Families are still on Holiday... We have to repeat everything that was said in class!

I prefer a "modified" calendar. Five to six weeks off in the summer is plenty.

I know that Edmonton Public Schools seem to consistently begin AFTER Labour day, regardless of when it falls, and yet they have no issues meeting instructional time guidelines. Why is this different for the CBE?

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Question 3: The majority of our schools follow a traditional calendar with instruction from early September through late June. For winter break in the traditional calendar, I prefer: -Winter break is two full weeks, including three weekends 59.1 % -Winter break is two full weeks with at least two weekends (This means the last day of classes and return to classes could be mid-week) 25.32% -No preference 15.58%

I have a preference for more time off after January 1, rather than more

time before December 25. The one Monday after being off is a nice treat. It would be more beneficial to not go so late as in 23 of Dec and to not

return so early as in Jan 3. Find a happy medium. I also prefer ending school as close as possible to Christmas

giving the student most time after Christmas for the break. prefer the kids are in school right up until Christmas with the 2 weeks

being from the start of Christmas to maximize family time and make vacation planning easier.

Winter Break should not start a week prior to Christmas. Family time is very important I prefer the time off to be more after Christmas than before it. Families need time during winter break and take that time irrespective of

our school calendar I would prefer winter break to start as late as possible in December and

return later in January. try to maintain a close match to the holidays that are in december 2017 to

jan 2018 keeping the days off as close to christmas as possible with it ending just after new years

I prefer that the Winter Break is scheduled around the actual days of the month instead of a Monday-Friday schedule to allow for days before Christmas and a few days after New Years before beginning school.

Starting and stopping mid-week is challenging, especially with classes that I only see twice a week.

Prefer break not to start so early and to have time off in early January instead

My whole life and in the history of Canada it has been known as "Christmas" Break. Please keep the name to let people know why we rest; to celebrate the arrival of Peace on Earth.

It is helpful to have a NID scheduled for the first day back from break. This helps with the transition between terms.

Depends on where the dates fall. A few days before Christmas is helpful as is a few days after Jan 1.

I think mid-week would ease them back in instead of flat out shock - I wouldn't expect much to get done if there was a two day week but it would set a pattern at least.

I find it most restful if the students go on break as close to Dec 25th as

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possible, with more time off after Jan. 1st I believe it would be preferable to have 3 weeks break at Christmas and

start the school year earlier. Starting winter break mid-week if necessary. It should be closer to

Christmas time. Many parents struggle with care when we end too early - such as Dec. 18

Does not apply to us Have last day of school on the 23rdish Preference is based on accommodating working parents with little

vacation. I would prefer to the break begin closer to Dec 24/25 that beginning

earlier as happened this year. I would prefer to have more time after Christmas and New Year's than before.

For consistency sake - three weekends, as leaving and returning to class midweek is chaotic.

The impact of the break is greatly reduced if begins or ends mid week. I much prefer when the break is taken as close to the 25th of December

as possible. End school as close to Christmas as possible even if it means ending on

a Wednesday. (I hated this year being out on December 16). This last year was terrible!! Having a full week off before Christmas was

too much. I would much rather go till at least mid week and have extra time off after new years day

I'd prefer more time after winter break than before I like having a few days off before Christmas. I would prefer having

school end in the middle of the week than having only a day or two off before Christmas when it falls on the weekend or very early in the week.

Classes should continue with only a couple days before Xmas with additional time after.

I would like to see winter break be one week and two weekends and have two weeks at spring break.

Full weeks off for Winter/Christmas break means that inevitably we end up with a wide swing of dates off as sometimes we have our children home from December 17 while other years we do not receive our children till almost Christmas Eve. As a family I find that the number of activities to participate in before Christmas are more numerous than after December 25th. For this reason I like to have my children off school sooner than December 22/23 to enjoy the festivities of the season. If by going to school for a part week can mean that we can consistently get our children home for December 20th or December 21 that would be more worthwhile than 3 weekends

I like the short weeks. For Spring break, it would be nice to have the students have 2 full weeks

off. It would be helpful to have the same breaks between the Catholic Board

and the CBE. I prefer to work as close to the winter break as possible. I would rather

not have the week off prior to the break. For example, I would have preferred to work this year until Dec 23 instead of Dec 16.

I prefer to work until Dec. 22, 23rd, which allows for more time post

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Christmas to spend with family and vacation. Usually the break is almost 3 weeks with professional development days

and organizational days. This is difficult to accommodate for working parents.

I prefer 2 weeks starting on December 23 no matter what day of the week it is.

I prefer modified timelines but we are in traditional I would prefer to see a shorter winter break and a longer spring break if

possible I would also prefer that the cbe and ccsd follow the same days off for

winter break. This is only an option when Christmas Day and New Year's are on a

Saturday or Sunday. This year's calendar had employees back to school on Jan. 3. The time after New Year's is when students, staff and parents can actually recover. The days before Christmas are not restful days as there are so many activities to complete in this time.

I do prefer that the break start as late as possible in December (i.e. as close to Christmas as possible) so that the first week in January is included.

Having a break start and end with the normal cycle of the weekends is probably easier for children to understand and families to plan for.

Winter break could be shorter. It is hard to have the kids at home for two weeks when the weather is bad and all their other activities are also on break

First day back in January should not be before January 4. At the same time as the Separate School break. Have classes end closer to December 25th and have more break after

Christmas and into the New Year. NOT like this year - way too early before Christmas.

I think most parents like the break to start as close to Christmas as possible and then stretch out afterwards. A long break before Christmas just adds to the stress for the families.

Winter break should be only 1 week. My preference however is to have the start of winter break within a few

days of Christmas. I hate having a full week before Christmas Day and then having to return to school within the first few days of January. If I had my say, break would start around the 22nd or even 23rd.

I would prefer the break to be closer to the 25th of Dec. Not like it was this year, a week off before the 25th.

This year’s school break starting on the 16th was RIDICULOUS!!! Students should be going to school as close to Christmas Eve as possible to give them more time in after Christmas!

Prefer to work closer to Christmas and have a longer break afterwards. Winter break is too long More choice when traveling so that we miss less school Also prefer to be off closer to Christmas and have one of the weeks off in

January. I have 3 young kids. Midweek start and finish helps a lot. A longer break after is not a bad idea Although I have no preference for when the break begins and ends I

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would not want to see it become less than 2 weeks long. Don't you mean Christmas Break? I find "Winter Break" offensive. In

Canada, most people still celebrate "Christmas". Can we make winter break longer and summer break shorter by 2 weeks Break should start as close to Christmas as possible - if it falls on a

Thursday or Friday, close school on the Tuesday before More than 2 weeks begins to be detrimental to learning. I strongly prefer the kids are in school until as close to Christmas as

possible (ie. December 20th-23rd) even if this means that the start and being the Winter Break midweek. Having the break as it was this year (Kids home a full week before Christmas - Dec. 17th) was ridiculous and does not coincide well with any other aspect of Family life - University completion dates and holidays for siblings, sporting and extracurricular activity breaks, siblings and relatives in other school systems (Separate, Springbank, Edmonton) making it difficult for extended family celebrations.

An observation in our school is that many families would still take the longer break regardless and thus would disrupt teaching with many of them having missed a few days.

I prefer the start of the break as close to the 24th as possible (rather than the kids being off school for a whole week before Christmas).

Can we please try to have winter break always fall on the same day and return on the same day? Example: We always break on December 21st, no matter what day it falls on.

Makes for a long break and great time for vacations Would like school breaks to match with the separate school board maximize uninterrupted school days Have it as close to Dec 24 as possible. Prefer classes go as close to

Christmas and more break time after Dec. 24th. This year off WAY TOO Early and therefore back too early. More time AFTER Dec. 24th is better for all.

I would prefer to always be out on Dec. 22 and have the time after Christmas and come back later in January

Going back to school on a mid-week is good as it is hard to go back to a full week of school after two weeks off.

The extra days could be tacked on to Spring Break to even out those two holidays.

longer breaks (1+ weeks) with fewer 4 or 5 days weekends (ex. around Easter, teacher's convention, etc.)

A shorter week in the lead up to and return from Christmas is welcome. Commences as close to Christmas day as possible. This year was too

early. Would prefer a set number of days before Christmas for families to enjoy

the holiday season together better Either way is fine, as long as there is a few days BEFORE Christmas Eve

- otherwise too busy too close and makes for greater stress in preparing for Christmas.

This need to be mostly after new years- ideally a whole week after Jan 1st to spend with my child

As many families will celebrate their Christmas in their home towns, 3-wk

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ends can grant the families more flexibility. I think that Spring break should be 2 weeks and attached to Easter that

way the kids are missing one chunk of time not having multiple breaks within 4 weeks. I also think that if all schools did this same break - it would save a HUGE amount of money for transportation and operational costs.

I prefer the majority of the break to fall before Christmas so the kids can participate in holiday preparations.

I wish the first day back was a PD. We are often missing students this first day due to cheaper flights. Teachers are fresher in their minds too!

Most parents work Mon-Fri jobs, so mid-week starts/ends to the breaks is disruptive for families. Schools should also NOT be permitted to tack the parent-teacher interviews to the start or end of spring break or winter break as this makes it harder for families to participate.

Language schools like French Immersion should be on a modified calendar to accommodate for language learning (more frequent breaks due to demands of learning a second language and language retention over the summer break).

I would prefer it started a bit later and the students more time after the new year.

Take school to the latest day possible to Christmas. Prefer to finish closer to Christmas I find winter breaks to be too long in modified calendar. As well as spring

break. Need to break up days better I would prefer winter break to be one full week only with two weekends.

Any more than that is excessive. What are parents to do with their kids while trying to work through winter break?

Please do not repeat this year's calendar where there was a week before Christmas off and only a couple days after New Years as holidays. It is far better to continue classes until closer to Christmas Day, giving students more time after New Year's Day.

My family really prefers having more time off before Christmas, rather than extra time off in January. The way the CBE structured the winter break in 2016-17 was perfect! The way the CCSD structured the same break was not!

Preference would be to teach up to as close to Christmas as possible, having the two full weeks after Christmas.

I would prefer the last day of school be as close to Christmas day as possible to allow for more of a break after Christmas

Again teachers have too much time off. I find the kids do better going back to school when they have a least one

day off after Jan 1. Would love to have an extra day or two after New Years unlike this year

we went back January 2nd, it would have been nice to go back on 4th of January instead.

Earlier break start and return to school preferred. I would rather teach closer to Christmas, even if it is teaching Mon-Wed,

leaving on Thursday and returning a Tuesday (for example). Preferably with more time off after Christmas than before Better to have the time off before December 25th, instead of a week off

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into the first week in January I prefer when the winter break coincides with the Catholic System's winter

break, as we have children in both systems. I prefer the Spring Break holiday to be aligned as well, as it was this year. This, in fact, is our family's paramount concern with the calendar.

I think we should make a decision that winter break begins Dec. 20th no matter what day of the week that is. That way people have enough time to travel before Christmas Eve (24th), instead of having the last day be Dec 23rd for example.

Go up to Dec. 22 at least. Better to have more time after Christmas. Stopping on 16th is too early!

At one time there was talk of making all CBE schools follow the modified calendar. Is there been any movement in that direction. Would it not be a cost savings?

Having a week off before Christmas is not a break for me. I would rather work all the way up until Christmas and then crash and burn for two weeks afterwards.

I don't believe 3 weekends is required. My child rested over a 10 day vacation - he agreed that it felt long. Two weeks in general should be sufficient for most children - and also coincide with outside child care options.

too much holiday and breaks Students got off way too early for Winter Break. It would have been better

to finish on a Wednesday when that happens. We would always prefer more school days off in January after Christmas

and New Years vs having a lot of time before December 25. Which is what happened this school year.

Students are excited and have troubles getting back into the routine. The best thing to do is to have a full 5 days of school when they return, otherwise the quality of instruction during a shortened first week back will be compromised.

It's nice to have 1 week prior to Christmas and 1 week after Christmas. The winter break should begin no earlier than December 21st The three weekends maximize the time we can spend as a family over

the winter holiday since my child's dad usually works right up to Dec. 24th and goes back to work on the first non-holiday weekday of the new year.

Winter break should be NO more than 2 weeks across 3 weekends - period

Start date for winter break closer to Christmas day as opposed to too early in Dec. (17, 18, 19, 20)

I prefer to have more of the time off to be before Christmas and less of the time off to be after New Years.

My preference is for as much of Winter break to be after Christmas as possible. Many businesses have December year ends, and it is difficult to take vacation with families until after the new year.

whatever gives the student the longest break 5 days before Christmas and three days after new year. I prefer to go as close as Christmas as possible and have longer time off

after Christmas. Or less than 2 full weeks

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We prefer to have a couple of days less during winter break and a couple of more days during spring break.

I would prefer shorter break so that other days off can be added to a longer break in another month. It is expensive to go away on vacation over the long breaks of winter and spring break

call it Christmas break please Release should be as close to Xmas as possible so that there is ample

time after new year's A shorter winter break would be just fine. If New Year's Day falls on a weekend or a Monday then school should

resume mid week I like same like a previous years , If Christmas falls on a weekend, though, I prefer midweek so that the kids

are not done on the 23. That is not enough time to prepare for Christmas. Would prefer to be on Modified Currently my children attend a modified school. Depends when Christmas falls - I prefer having the time off after

Christmas rather than before - I would prefer more time after Christmas and New Year's Day (for

example, would have preferred 2016-17 break to be Dec 22nd - Jan 8th). What I appreciate more is that the kids stay in school until closer to

Christmas. Time after Christmas is more valuable that time before Keep with current arrangement. Break commences the last Friday before

Christmas Day and concludes the first week day after New Year's Day, unless that day is a Thursday or Friday.

Kids need the break! As long as the Friday before and Monday after aren't also NID. This

situation is very challenging and or expensive for parents to find childcare (camps are one week, not one week plus a day). Reality in 2017 is most families have either single parents or two working parents something CBE is completely unaware of.

Less vacation for teachers. Maximize in class instruction and less reliance on homework. Less vacation for teachers. Maximize in class instruction and less reliance on homework.

Neither. 2 weeks is lengthy and difficult to ensure care during that time for those that work.

I would prefer that our kids stay in school until Dec 22 or 23 if the 24th is on a Saturday and then come back mid-week in January.

This year's break was too late. If changing the break so it begins and ends mid-week meant the break would be earlier, that would be better.

It is important to me as a parent who has a child in CBE and one in CSSD that the breaks match as closely as possible.

I prefer winter break to start the last week of December and the first week of January

Winter break could be a week longer and summer break a week shorter for all schools. This provides for proper family time (especially with Calgary's diverse community who are travelling to other parts of the world for the Christmas break).

I prefer when it is very cold for kids to stay home On the condition that it starts right at Christmas and goes further into

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January. For example, 2017 break would be Dec. 23 - Jan.7 (instead of a week off before Christmas).

This is preferable over students getting out for Christmas break before the 20th of December, or returning on the 3rd!!

With no child care typically available during this time it is extremely hard when the winter break occurs early, the closer to Christmas the easier to work around.

No preference, other than the break is at least 2 full weeks How about 1 week with 2 weekends? At least give a break to kids. Please keep in mind many parents still work over Christmas and do not

have this time off and now require to make additional child care arrangements

I wish all schools had a modified calendar I would prefer this is it would mean that they have more time off before

Christmas - even a few days before the first weekend. One week with two weekends is sufficient. I would rather have more

instructional days. Make winter break as short as possible please. 2 weeks is too long. As long as school ends in the beginning of June I would like to see students stay in school as close to December 24th as

possible and have them go back to school later in January (have more time off after Dec. 25th rather than starting the break early like Dec. 17th for example) I would like them to go back after the first week in January.

A PD day for teachers for the day after winter break is very beneficial for planning. Planning on the day leaving for winter break is not ideal.

This is Canada - it's cold, get the kids back to school so they can finish the year and get to summer. Plus this is an important time for low income parents to work more and make money and it's hard to find people to look after your children

This past winter break was too early. It would have been preferable to have students attend school up to Dec. 21 and have them return later in January.

Shorter winter break please. Kids don’t need 2-3 weeks off in the middle of winter.

I want my school to remain on the traditional schedule -not the modified year

I personally believe it's too much time off. Easier to arrange care Returning January 3rd was far too early this school year. I think being flexible to accommodate the days the holidays fall on is

important, if this means some years have a mid week start or finish that seems ok.

It would be preferred that the first day off be as close to Christmas Eve as possible, with a longer stretch after New Year's.

If you mean Christmas break... I prefer a late finish in December and a later restart in January

Would like to have a school in Saddleridge with modified calendar for elementary students.

Compared to many other countries, Canadian students have too many

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days off school. It would be great to have the first Monday back be without students, in

order to regroup. This last year the break was too early. Dec. 17 finish. It is nice to have

time in January Perhaps this could be more flexible to accommodate a consist start date

of after labour day. I prefer that winter break starts two days before Christmas. A full week off

before Christmas day is hard on the students return. I would really like to see the CBE consider increasing the number of

schools using a modified calendar. Less teacher and student burnout due to more frequent breaks and substantial rest time while on breaks!

I prefer to start and end mid-week rather than to have a full week off before Christmas. January is a long month and it is hard when they have to go back the 2nd or 3rd.

Winter break should start as late in December as possible, even if this means a partial week of instruction. Ideally, Winter Break would not begin earlier than Dec. 22 and would extend through the first week of January.

If it's not broken, please don't try and fix it! Is winter break same/different from Christmas break? It has been very

concerning that my high school children have just come back from Christmas break and they go right into 2-3 weeks off to 'study'. Why do the kids need such a LONG study break? What happened to the 'old days' when students (myself) were expected to keep up with their studies and not given 2-3 weeks of to study for final exams. And, seriously, I have not noticed any 'superior programming' as I assume teachers have increased non-contact time to prep and mark. My experience/feeling is that CBE students are off WAY more than necessary.

Better to be a few days before Christmas rather than working right up to the 23rd.

It is better to have classes run later in to December, such that Christmas is at the beginning of the break. Most people do not travel during the break. Further, this allows what is a stressful family holiday for many to be completed such that one can spend the remainder of winter break actually relaxing and avoiding stress. It allows people to return to school in January with a fresh, relaxed mind.

I prefer less time off BEFORE December 24th, and more time off after that.

Preference that is same as catholic break! Kids in each system and it means someone has to miss school to get away...

Winter break is far too long. I would prefer more time off after Christmas instead of before. I prefer the bulk of the 2 weeks they have off to be after Christmas. I would prefer to have school end on Dec 22 and return Jan 8 2018 and

have the 2nd week after Christmas off instead of before. This would the calendar item of biggest importance to me for the whole 2017/2018 year.

I prefer this to be 2 full weeks with no PD days before breaks or after breaks???

I believe should take survey about the quality of education (study) which needs too much improvement.

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The return to classes should be the first day of the Week - Monday Time off for the students after Christmas is much better than time off

before Christmas It needs to be called the Christmas Break just as the Easter Break is

called by its rightful name! By winter break, I think everyone would probably be ready for a pause

whether it's children, teachers or parents. And it's the same by March break/Easter, which could do a bit longer rather than just a week (for March break) or a weekend (Easter). However, I personally find that the summer break is too long for children and research studies also show evidence that extensive long summer break (over 2 months in our case) affects academic performance. It's not like we had severe hot weather during summer months that students have trouble focusing, it would make more sense to have multiple mini breaks over the academic year and shorten the summer break, just as in the European countries.

Our family really values the extended time off around Christmas and our children usually feel very much in need of a good break.

School ends far too late in June. I would remove dates at Christmas to make up for this shortfall.

The break is too long during school time, one week is enough. I prefer to have longer summer break

The break is far too long. December 23rd to January 2 is all that is necessary.

I feel that except for start of school, students get entirely too much time off.

Again, my children are on the modified school year I prefer the kids not get out until a few days before Christmas - 20th, 21st

ish. This past year the kids were out a full week before Christmas. I would prefer to end later in December so the extra week is in January.

Coming back Jan. 2 is too soon. Kids can attend school midweek. It won't harm them. I would prefer to begin the break closer to Christmas, ending sometime

between the 21-23, and have more time in January before returning. I would like Christmas holidays to start later (just before Christmas, like

Dec 22), and have a longer time after Christmas. As long as it's 2 days before Christmas to give people a travel day or two.

When the 24 of December is a Thursday or Friday, I'd like to see school stay in until the 23, and have a later return date in January.

Starting or stopping winter break midweek would be preferential as adherence to three weekend provision can cause the last day of school to be immediately prior to Christmas Eve. This makes it exceedingly difficult to get out of town in time for Christmas without pulling the kid(s) out of school. For this reason I believe the policy should be altered to minimum number of days 2-3 before Christmas Eve.

Strong preference. I don't like school restarting on a Wed or Tuesday: if we all go back to

work on Monday. Plus hard to get child care for a Tuesday I would like it if the students went to school until December 21 or 22; then

start school later in January. Spring Break should not have been omitted. It is the break that most

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needs adjustment, in my opinion. Currently it is NOT actually mid-way through the second semester, which would be mid-April and would have a better chance of actually being spring in Calgary... I prefer spring break being purposely connected to Easter. If Easter is early, as it is in 2018, Spring Break should be the week following (e.g. April 2-9, 2018 with return to school on Apr 10 in lieu of Easter Monday.)

The long portion of the break should fall after Christmas. I found that in the 2016 winter break classes ended too early and the kids

were back to school too soon right after New Year A mid-week start to the break is especially important for years when

Christmas falls on a weekend. Whatever minimizes class disruptions I would prefer a longer winter break 4 weeks I find that three full weekends is too long and the kids have a hard time

getting back on schedule This year (2016-2017) it was too much time before Christmas and not

enough after - stopping mid-week would allow for more time after new year

I would prefer that winter break NOT be 2 full weeks. 1 week to 10 days would be enough. I never get that much time off work.

This past winter break was not as well-planned, in my opinion, as in past. The children were out over a week before Christmas Day. I would prefer more break time after Christmas.

When Christmas falls on the weekend, as it did for 2016, I would prefer school going until closer to Christmas.

The longer the better - for travel. Days off before Dec 23 or 24 is very challenging for working parents as

year-end is usually a very busy time and taking more than a day or perhaps two before Christmas is almost impossible. So alternate care is needed. First week of January off is much easier to manage with work schedule.

The kids need a break and 2 full weeks and 3 weekends works best. Winter Break should be the last business day before the 24th of Dec and

the first business day after Jan 1st With the majority of the break being after Christmas. that any PD or non-instructional days in December be added to winter

break It is preferable winter break starts as close to Christmas as possible. For

instance, this year break started December 16 and would have been better to start the 23rd. A later return in January is preferable.

Always You must give full consideration to the cost of flights and when they are

cheapest. Finish early, return early should be your general guideline...with at least 16 days of holidays.

The request for information on Traditional vs Modified calendar is confusing as I don't know the difference, why they exist and which calendars the schools my children attend use.

Can we please call it Christmas break? Why do we have this break - because of Christmas, whether a person recognizes Christmas or not, it's still Christmas.

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I would much prefer more time off at winter break, and more in the summer.

I prefer children leave school earlier in December and return right after New Year's Day. Very little actual learning happens in December with kids hyped up, and tired teachers on cruise control or planning winter concerts.

This year's winter break was too early. I would always prefer to start the break as close to Christmas as possible.

Winter break should start and end later, it would be better to have a couple days off before Christmas, not a full week.

Cut down on summer break n add more days to winter break. All schools should follow modified calendar. The 2 month summer break

is very difficult for child care and is unnecessary. You should review the timing of the winter break. The CBE and separate

school as well as other boards (ie Rockyview) have their winter breaks at different times. When families have children or parents that school or work in different boards, their winter breaks don't align and are forced to take kids out of school or leaves from work to take a winter break. Aligning the spring break would be beneficial

Nice to have family time with working parents with three weekends. Winter break should be long from mid-December to mid-January. The shorter the break, the better! I prefer the schools to let out as close to Christmas as possible and to

have the second week off to be a full week in January, in other words I would rather 2 full weeks post-Christmas than 1 week before and after.

Preference is to go to school as close to Christmas a possible with the majority of the break after Christmas day (i.e. if Christmas is a Saturday - go to school until the Thursday or Friday right before and NOT be off a full week before Christmas)

Returning too early, like on the 3rd or 4th often results with classrooms that are missing many students.

Winter break should be as close to Christmas Day as possible Although I like the 3 full weekends, when the 1st falls on a weekend - it is

nice to have more than 1 day off after Jan 1. I prefer a later start date and return to school the week following New

Years. It takes time, generally a week, to decompress after school breaks and

give us time to prepare for Christmas. Without 2 full weeks, you feel like you're back to the school schedule just barely after you start to relax.

I would prefer Spring break to be two weeks and Winter break to be one week.

on the years that the calendar sets us to come back before Jan 5 a mid-week stop is better than starting the break on a gate like the 16th of Dec.

I would also prefer that winter break includes Christmas. it would make it easier to find day camps for working parents. I think 3 weeks is a bit too long. Gives family maximum time to jig up a holiday schedule that isn't

restrictive - can help save on travel costs I prefer a Winter Break that allows for at least one week after Christmas

Day. Before Christmas is always a rush around time, whereas after is the

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time to fully relax with my children. Larger blocks of time are easier to deal with than random days off; add

time to the winter break and lose the random pd days The 2016-17 winter break started way too early! Kids should not be out

of school before December 19th. Way too hectic for families who celebrate Christmas to try to work, get ready for Christmas and worry about childcare or entertaining their kids. It's soooo much nicer to have the extra time off with family after the chaos of Christmas and New Years as opposed to before.

Again a standard start time such as December 22 and return on Jan 5-7 would be ideal. It's nice to have more time after Christmas rather than before.

spring break around Easter would be better, when parents have the time off

having winter break as close to christmas day - the time is more apprecaited after christmas, and returning in january is more heartening

When Christmas is on a Weekend, it would be nice to finish the Wednesday before to allow teachers the opportunity to prepared for holidays too, not just students and their families. Many teachers have a family too that they would like to spend QUALITY time with.

Winter Break should not start before December 22 in any calendar year....

i think winter break could even be shorter If this is over Christmas time have switched to a school with modified calendar Students begin to lose focus on academic tasks as the holidays approach

and are much more focus when they return from a break at this time. Depends on the year and how dates fall on the calendar. Starting & stopping classes mid-week creates a real issue for childcare

for those of us who have children who attend camps as a child-care option. Childrens programs are not typically available when it's a 2-3 day experience.

The first day back to school would be the first business day in January, not extended into Jan.

I prefer having some break time before Christmas and some after New Years, even if this means the break starts and/or ends mid-week

It's nice for everyone, including the kids teachers, to get this guaranteed break and refresh both minds and bodies

School should be start in august winter break will be long helps all parents to plan vacation to their home country

Spring break is fall on new year of several countries. That students go to school as close to December 24 as possible and the

two weeks be after Christmas not before. Senior High School students should start as per any work week

employment position Winter break should never include a week before Christmas Eve as it did

this year. This would be preferable only if the extra days off could be given at the

end of June I'd certainly not like to see it have less than 3 weekends, but I'd be

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supportive of it extending earlier on those years where Christmas is on a Saturday, Sunday, or Monday.

I would prefer to finish as close to Christmas as possible and then have more time off following Christmas (i.e. how the catholic school did it this year)

Winter break should start as close to Christmas as possible to allow for an opportunity for everyone to have a break after the business of Christmas and to make the long month of January easier on teachers and students.

I think break time should be reduced, as more than two months of holidays in July and August are already there.

I prefer more time off after Christmas. For example, in 2016, December 16th was far too early to let out for break. I'd prefer less time before the 25th and more after January 1st.

I notice you cannily left out an option that doesn't include two full weeks. Sneaky of you. I dislike the two full weeks which leads to an extremely late end to the school year. Writing exams June 29 is ridiculous. End the school year around the 25th. If that means a few fewer days on each break, so be it. My kids are in grade 9 & 12 so I've had experience with the old calendar guidelines that didn't include late starts to the school year or extremely long breaks which lead to reasonable June end dates, when everyone is burnt out. They were MUCH better

This would more closely follows business closures for working parents Christmas break falls within what parents work during Christmas holidays

to match. As a working parent, I find it very difficult to arrange scheduling when

there is a Monday off at the end of winter break. It would be greatly appreciated if that day off was scheduled at an alternate time.

I like having a balance between time before and after the holidays. I think this would have been a great year to end classes and begin again mid-week rather than January 3rd. I like having 3 weekends... (if starting before Labour Day allows for time to be adjusted accordingly at winter break, I think stopping/starting mid-week, or extending holidays by a few days at one end of the break would be preferable.)

My child goes to a modified calendar school My children are in daycare/childcare, so it doesn't matter too much to our

family. For the 2016-17 year, students were off too soon prior to Christmas -

midweek start and end would have been better. In our experience, it is much more difficult to arrange care mid-week. Much prefer when the break MOSTLY occurs AFTER the 24. It is

challenging when the break begins before the 22 of December Having the break start closer to Christmas is better. When you have mid week start or finish, it is just time to fool around or

leave early, come back late from holiday. The time off should be given in December and not into January. Students

should go back as soon as possible in January The closer to Christmas the better! More importantly, I prefer as many days off in December, and not to drag

out winter break too far into January.

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This year’s winter break was TERRIBLE, way to early off, and too early back in January.

I'd rather it be later than earlier. 2016 is an example of the break being too early. In my opinion, the break should have started Dec 23, not the 16.

Why do these kids have SO much time off?? This is my major concern. Sometimes the break starts too long before Christmas. Would like it to

start as close to Christmas and extend beyond for the 2 weeks Would prefer the majority of the time off to before Christmas as opposed

to January. Being off til Jan 9 is too long It is much better when they have just a few days off prior to Christmas

and the majority of the time after Christmas. Day Kids need the break. I am more interested in the dates that this occurs on. It seems like some

years the kids get out really early or really close to Christmas. I prefer the second with a longer break after Christmas/New Years.

As a working parent, I do not get two full weeks off at Christmas time. It is not family time together, rather I have to find day camps to send children to. During already a busy season adding on a change of routine is added stress.

I would prefer the brake to allow more time after Christmas than before. It should be three weeks Prefer that they have the extra week before Christmas not in January. We are modified, does not apply to us NA The last day of school should be as close as possible to December 25th

even if that means ending on a Wednesday 2 weeks for break is too long. Monthly PD days. Do the teachers ever

work? I prefer for "winter break" to be called Christmas! I would prefer a shorter summer than a shorter Christmas. It is much nicer when the winter break is the week before Christmas and

the week of Christmas and they return to school the first working day in January. Do not like having the first week of January off.

All together Can increase winter break cutting days from summer holidays... 2 month

is a long holiday for kids. winter break 4 weeks It's far easier on the kids to not have so many "short weeks" On modified calendar. It would be ideal if school could be let out 4-5 days before Christmas to

allow for travel and holiday preparations. Prefer last day to be as close to Christmas as possible Prefer to be out of school at least a week before Christmas (24th). Winter break should be 3 weeks Spring break should overlap with Easter every year. Make all schools traditional calendar!! I feel that breaks should be scheduled around full weeks as much as

possible. Also, I feel that breaks should overlap as much as possible with the CSSD.

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My oldest is in grade 10 so I've just learned how much time off they have in January for exams ... I would whichever option maximizes a greater number of instructional hours in January to prepare for exams.

It would be great if we have the start of the holiday closer to the Xmas holidays and more time after the New Year

spread additional days throughout the year to provide shorter, more frequent breaks

It is easier to organize family and work activities around weeks, rather than half weeks.

Parents are travelling for Christmas and Days Off. Flexible Makes for more a holiday and quality family time. some people prefer going back home or on vacation in Christmas so their

children won't have to miss the school if the break is full 3 weeks I prefer not to have the kids go back to school so soon after the new year.

I am thankful it shifts this next year. I like when the majority of the break falls AFTER Christmas as there is

too much going on before Currently in a modified school This year the break started too early. I'd prefer it to start closer to

Christmas and come back later in January. It makes the most sense to have the full week at least before Christmas

off. Having a full week after new years is often 'boring' for children. Prior to Christmas much to do and excitement.

In our school, teachers would like to have a PD day the first day coming back from the winter break, to get ready and prepared to teach.

Coming back to school mid week is a great way to get back into routine with students and increase their school stamina.

Going back on the third of January is rough, as we did for the 2016-2017 school year. It would be preferable to head out mid-week, and return mid week.

Allows for more flexible travel / family visit time - travel during this time is already so pricey!

Would prefer to get off as close as possible to December 24 I prefer starting the break closer to the 24th of December rather than a

week before. I prefer for the last day of school before the break to be December 23 or

the nearest Friday to that date if it falls on a Saturday, Sunday, Monday or Tuesday.

I prefer to have more time off after Christmas, than before Returning at least a day after New Years day. e.g. Jan 3+

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Question 4: Currently, 27 schools follow a modified calendar with instruction from mid-August through late June. For winter break in the modified calendar, I prefer: -Winter break may be up to three full weeks, including four weekends 19.31% -Winter break may be up to three full weeks with at least three weekends (this means the last day of classes and return to classes could be mid-week) 16.77% -No preference 63.91%

I wish more schools had modified calendars Modified is too difficult to schedule child care around and leaves the

summer way too short At Dr. Oakley they do a 2 week break at Thanksgiving, 2 weeks at X-

mas and 2 weeks at Spring break. I feel that all modified calendars should go this route as it is easier than a 3 week break in the winter months.

The modified calendar is awesome! I would love it if more schools could follow this calendar.

Student not on modified calendar All schools should follow a modified calendar which would be better for

students overall. This would be a welcome break for all. We aren't in a modified system My child's school follows the traditional calendar I strongly dislike the modified calendar. I have a son who is a student in

a school to which to applies, and I have heard of nothing but negative feedback about the calendar. I think it was one of the worst moves the CBE every implemented.

All schools should be modified calendar The benefit of the modified calendar is that provides more time during

the traditional breaks -- why not utilize this? Have not had any experience with a modified calendar. Mid August start times are quite awkward and seem to shorten the

vacation time, drastically. Winter break is WAY too long. Two weeks max. Could use another

week in another month my school does not follow the modified calendar therefore I have no

preference n/a - I don't feel I have the right to answer this fairly as my child is in the

traditional school. Why aren't more schools on modified, I think that the whole system

would benefit from this calendar. Having breaks that do not end or begin mid-week allows me to

coordinate schedules with my husband, who is not a teacher. Makes it much easier!

My children do not attend a Modified Calendar School. This is a much better idea, as previously stated in question 3 Other than the third week, the start should be the same as traditional. I wish we were all on modified calendars.

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It's easier to have them start on a Monday instead of midweek. Especially as a working parent

2 weeks is long enough Preference is based on accommodating working parents with little

vacation. winter break should not be three school weeks don't like the modified calendar N/A I would prefer that modified calendar follow same 2 week period as

traditional calendar, with the possibility of starting the school year later or ending earlier. Three weeks off is too long.

None of those are good options. Does not apply to me Doesn't apply to us It is a long break and for many families this is a hardship. I would prefer

a two week break, with another week break in May like it used to be. As long as the break includes Christmas Eve Christmas Day and off

until after New Year's Day . Christmas is an important day in our country and should therefore be considered a holiday.

Starting mid August means more time off during the year. I do not support that since it is hard to find supervision for the child.

Modified calendars are no good, get rid of them. The weather can make the roads become very hazardous and increase

the risks of a collision. Aligned as closely as possible with the traditional calendar. I don't like the idea of this modified calendar in general We don't agree with the modified calendar as it makes childcare

extremely difficult over extended holiday periods. Would not send my children to modified program I RATHER HAVE A TRADITIONAL CALENDAR Breaks should be shorter and school days shorter. Long school days

and long breaks are interfering with students ability to learn. The present schedule only benefits teachers and school personnel.

Unless you go away for winter break, three weeks is too long for the kids to be home from school.

My children do not attend a school with a modified calendar I don't care for school starting mid-August and ending late June. Not my

preference of calendar. Having a break start and end with the normal cycle of the weekends is

probably easier for children to understand and families to plan for. All schools should go modified more breaks throughout the year! Having schools on two different calendars is ridiculous. Bring back

traditional for ALL schools. There was no need to change. Don't want a 3 week winter break. Can't manage with work. I don't like the modified calendar, in any scenario. I prefer to work as late in December as possible so as to have more

time off in January. I am strongly opposed to starting school mid-August. Not on modified calendar; however if I was would still prefer closer to

December 25th and break last more into the new year.

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I would match it closer to the traditional calendar. Our family doesn't follow modified calendar. Mid August is too early - we

are not in Calgary in mid August. Prefer to see this standardized for schools in Calgary. This will help

families to plan with a longer-view of the future. I feel that too much away from school would affect the retention of

material learned. By having too much time away from school it could be possible that upon return to school it takes longer to review and catch up.

Our school is traditional calendar so I have no opinion on modified. Can we make winter break longer and summer break shorter by 2

weeks? Not on a modified calendar. Same as above My children's schools are not on a modified calendar. Same Maximize uninterrupted school days I am not on a modified calendar I like to see all schools follow a modified calendar as the students get

bored with two months off in standard calendar. No comment on the modified calendar. I prefer the traditional calendar

by far!! Have not had experience with modified calendar I prefer to have another week off separate from winter and spring break

for the additional week. Would prefer a set number of days before Christmas for families to

enjoy the holiday season together better. My daughter is switching to a modified calendar school. We'd like 3

weeks here as a minimum and not 2 like the traditional calendar. With my son at a traditional calendar school we can better maximize vacation time and less school missed since they are not on the same schedule.

Starting back in Mid August is quite disruptive to summer / sports / family planning, etc.

and ideally 2 weeks after new years to spend with my child I would hate kids to be in school mid-Aug. Summer is so short here we

need to take advantage of it. modified calendars are good educational practice I don't like this calendar set up Too long Both options are bad. Someone needs to make camps available if you

are going to take 3 weeks in the winter. Average vacation time for parents is 3 weeks FYI.

There should not be any modified calendar Would hate school to start mid Aug As long as we don't return on a Thursday for a day and a half of

classes. Not affected. I wish we had more modified calendars. Better to have the time off before December 25th, instead of a week off

into the first week in January

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Switch these schools to Traditional Calendar My school follows the Traditional Calendar so my comments will be

related to that. 3 weeks is too much time off Not applicable to me I hate the modified calendar. How do I know if I am in the 27 schools??? same answer above just in

case I am I actually wish that all schools would follow a modified calendar. Four weekends off is ridiculous. See #3 I will not send my child to a modified calendar school. I don't like modified school calendars/schedule My son’s school has not followed the modified calendar and I hope his

school (Westgate) continues with the traditional calendar! It is difficult to get students to start back to school mid week so three full

weeks is better and a Monday start. Two weeks or less is better THE MODIFIED CALENDAR IS HORRENDOUS AND RUINS

SUMMER HOLIDAYS. This is ridiculous. All public schools should be on the same schedule

period. Summer break should be exactly that. We don't like a mid August start. Summer is already too short. Have to consider child care options for parents that work. Are there

any? Less vacation for teachers. Maximize in class instruction and less

reliance on homework. My children are in a traditional school, however I do wish all CBE

schools were on a modified calendar. I experienced the Australia school year and found the "burn out" much less and the sustained focus and effort much better for the kids as they were in school for 10-12 weeks and then had 2 weeks off, with exception of year end break which was about 5 weeks.

There should be no modified calendar schools. not applicable I leave this to those with experience of modified calendar. I believe our school follows only the Traditional Calendar, so my answer

above applied (question #3). As a teacher, I prefer returning to school mid week after a break, as the

students are able to focus for a shorter period and it is a nice transition period. From a teaching and planning perspective, I also like the transition.

I like the traditional calendar .The modified calendar does not accommodate working parents.

One week off. That's It!! Same comments as above I hate them going back to school in August!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I would definitely vote against a modified calendar. We don't require a

longer winter break. Wish more schools offered this option!

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Both choices are longer than they need to be. The children need more time with teacher assisted worktime.

This situation makes it very difficult for parents who do not have three weeks off in winter

I don't like the modified mid August start calendar and prefer the traditional school year.

I don't like the modified calendar. Modified calendar is difficult for low income families to find affordable

daycare. Most people take time off during the warmer months. If people take time off during the colder months they are usually travelling.

We want longer summer not winter break Prefer same as traditional calendar I would like to see our school move to a modified calendar (west springs

school) I personally feel that it is too much time away from studies N/A Not a fan of mid August start. Eliminate having most of the Fridays off Not helpful to participate in a modified calendar to hard to work with Only attending traditional school year. Preferred to have only 2 weeks. 3 weeks is too long We have never been in a school with a modified calendar and likely

would never chose one. I leave this choice up to the families who attend these schools.

We NEVER want to start school in August. We want the time in the summer. August can be Calgary's best weather.

Modified Calendar is ridiculous and I would like the traditional calendar back!

May I also suggest modified calendar start their break earlier in December and return to school at the same day in January as traditional. As a parent with 2 kids in traditional and 1 kid in modified I feel it would be better to have one off earlier and go back at the same time

School should never begin in August Not applicable to me. As I do not teach in a modified setting, I don't feel it fair to have my

opinion included. My children have never had a modified calendar. I wouldn't want a

modified calendar, but since I've never had one, I have no preference. really dislike this lengthy winter break I absolutely hate our modified calendar year my child is not in the modified calendar N/A in my case 3 weeks is way too long for the kids to be out of routine. As a parent

and a teacher, it is very difficult to get kids back into routine after such a LONG break!

Our family does not have children in modified calendar system I do not prefer start on August. So just 2 weeks on winter break This does not apply to my family. We are not modified My children do not attend modified calendar schools.

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For most modified calendars for the longer break for winter I would have no preference. However, unique setting schools, on modified calendars should have no longer than a 2 full weeks off (same as traditional calendar)


Do not like mid-August start I do NOT want a modified calendar The return to classes should be the first day of the Week - Monday I prefer students to be in school as much as they can. I believe that

youth sitting idly with nothing to do often get into trouble and are not supervised well as their parents typically would not take three weeks off at Christmas.

Our schools follow the Traditional calendar, which I strongly prefer Our children's school follows a traditional calendar Again, it's Christmas Break as the CBE doesn't call other religious

holidays from non-Christian faiths by an inaccurate name N/A Not applicable. I don't use modified calendar and I'm not aware that

some schools have 3 weeks winter break! It's appealing and I think you should make it mandatory for all schools.

Way too long either way. What do we do with our kids??? Why not have a week in late April or early May when everyone needs

it? DO NOT CHANGE - WORKING PARENTS - WE DO NOT GET THE

SAME AMOUNT OF VACATIONS AS TEACHERS If you have several students (kids) in different calendar school that

mess up you vacation plan and make it difficult to manage. Why don't we stick on the traditional calendar for all CBE school board?

Too many much time off at Christmas. Reduce time off mid year, in favor of more time off in the summer.

The break is too long during school time, one week is enough. I prefer to have longer summer break

The break is far too long. December 23rd to January 2 is all that is necessary.

have never worked within a modified calendar Too much time off and too little homework. Doesn't apply to our kids. I've never worked in a modified calendar school. N/a to us. Not fair to comment. I selected no preference as my child does not attend modified calendar

school. Our school follows the traditional calendar Not on modified calendar - don't like the concept They should be in school when it cold/ out of school when it's warm

(summer) I'm not a fan of the modified calendar, wish my children's school was not.

We are strongly opposed to the modified calendar I prefer to start school in September and keep the traditional calendar. I don't know the issues for school/families who follow the modified

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calendar. Children aren't in this program. I hate the modified calendar. My child is not on the modified calendar Not in a modified calendar school N/A My children are not in one of the 27 Modified Calendar schools but I

wish they were. Not part of modified program. I don't work at a modified calendar school The modified calendar should be done away with. My son is special

needs and with memory issues (ADHD) these breaks are far too long and hard for these kids to catch up.

My kids do not attend this type of school. It's not fair for me to comment My child is on the modified schedule. This winter break is far too long.

My child falls out of routine during this time, loses information she has learned and is eager to return at least 2 weeks into the break. Shorter is better!

the school my son is designated follows the traditional calendar Not at a modified calendar school Except for the fact that I do not agree with modified calendar. How many days then the students will be in the school? Can we just have 1 school calendar for simplicity? Again, more time off at winter+++ NO modified calendar please Doesn’t apply but having long time off at Xmas cannot work for parents

vacation at 3 weeks Where can I comment about "Spring" break? Please move this to April.

March is not spring in Calgary. The weather is terrible and travel difficult because it's so expensive.

I don't agree with modified calendar If school started in August we'd move back to BC Doesn't apply to us. Does not affect me Prefer traditional calendar 3 weeks?! My child's school is traditional calendar. I prefer two weeks with the modified calendar and two weeks off in

October (Dr. Oakley calendar) My current school follows the traditional calendar Modified calendar is great!!!! Modified calendars are ridiculous I hate having two of my kids in this

school, they get way too many days off. At least one month for winter break. How the school make up the required instruction time with extra day

off? I don't feel the school really consider students first after reading the guidelines. The only thing there is to add additional day offs to teachers.

Fortunately I don't have kids in a modified calendar school because that sounds like a nearly impossible schedule for working parents to cope

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with. This break is too long and often the kids are bored and missing school

after the second week Our school does not follow a modified calendar so this my opinion here

is not relevant for me to I have one student who may be in a modified calendar next year and

another child in a traditional. Winter break is a good place to match their schedules as closely as possible for a family vacation.

Not on modified calendar I think more schools should be on the modified calendar :) The kids currently have far too long a break. I feel they are both too long for winter break. The children have a hard

time adjusting to going back to school after such a long break. My child attends traditional calendar. Survey should have been set up

differently so this question is requested to be answered by parents with children in a modified calendar

Not at a school with a modified calendar so I can't really comment on it. Winter break should remain two weeks with an extra week long break in

the fall, in line with other school jurisdictions that use some form of modified calendar with an August start of instruction.

I hate this idea in general. Kids need 2 months off in the summer. Prefer two full months of summer... I think 3 weeks is too long Three weeks off makes it very hard for my family. As child care would

be an issue. Not applicable I do not have a student in a school with a modified calendar. This is too long, more like a social club I am not in a modified calendar and do not prefer it Difficult for parents who don't have before or aftercare and no family to

take care of child when they are working N/A for our school My child’s school does not follow this calendar, however, I would be

interested in more schools following this calendar. As my child's school is not on a modified calendar. Not at the modified program so prefer not to say. I am not in schools with modified calendars I'm not in a school like that I dislike the modified calendar period. Once the summer cut in short, the longer break the better. N/a My child attends a traditional calendar school Winter break should not be more than two weeks or even less. Less time off and match what parents have to work, we can't all afford

day camps or daycare while we work. I would not like a modified calendar for my child's schooling. n/a I rather have more breaks during spring/early summer then winter

break...we don’t care about winter break. Does not apply

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My children do not attend a school on a modified calendar. I do not like the modified calendar Prefer winter break was 2 weeks. 3 weeks is too much Would rather my child not have school during August as it cuts into

family holiday time. I would be opposed to a Mid-August start. Christmas vacation is cold

weather does not make up for lost summer time I think 3 weeks is too long Don’t want school in the summer My child's school follows the Traditional calendar. Any longer would make it harder on teachers to keep up I do not like this option. I do not prefer the modified calendar Every school should follow modified calendar. I prefer only two weeks I don't like the modified calendar. It doesn’t matter, just make all the schools traditional! Modified calendar

is horrible for working parents. I prefer classes from Sept to late June The modified school calendar is terrible..summer cut short and the

Christmas and spring break are ridiculously long I do not support a modified calendar in any CBE school setting. I actually don't like the modified calendar and would prefer traditional for

my kids. These winter/spring breaks are TOO LONG! Some children struggle

with long breaks. I think Winter break should remain the same 2 weeks as the traditional

calendar with an additional week added either to the current fall break (3 - 2 week breaks), or an additional week attached to May long weekend (2 - 2 week breaks and 2 - 1 week breaks).

My children's school doesn't follow the modified calendar so I don't have an opinion on the impact.

It's better to have our children out of school in August than in December, given our climate. In December they would spend more time sitting in front of the screen.

I don't support a modified calendar N/A Neither. I do not like modified calendar. Prefer two weeks for winter break and two in October - better for

student learning

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Question 5: Non-instructional days: combining with holidays A non-instructional day is a day when students are not in attendance. Staff are working and the day may be used for activities such as parent/teacher/student conferences, professional learning for staff, appeals or organizational work. These days are standard for all schools on both calendars throughout the system and are positioned evenly throughout the school year. System non-instructional days are utilized to provide consistency for families, provide opportunities for school and system staff to work together as well as provide cost-saving measures for transportation. I prefer: -Non-instructional days should be attached to holiday/long weekend breaks whenever possible 54.37% -Non-instructional days should not be attached to holiday/long weekend breaks 7.15% -A combination of above is preferable 31.35% -No preference 7.13%

More days off is better for kids allowing extra rest and parents can do fun things such as go camping go drive to the mountains

These could be used to give time off in a month that doesn't have a holiday or to elongate a holiday weekend.

Again, taking attendance I see that on a long weekend a lot of parents take the extra day anyway.

If they are fully attached, then parents may not attend the scheduled conferences.

Better for families Time with family is important. Teachers deserve to be able to take a personal day to extend a long

weekend No one believes teachers actually show up to a PD before a long

weekend. This is better for families as they often have the tome off anyways and

arranging childcare is easier It feels to me that students are out of school for non instructional days too

often. I would prefer Fridays for PD days as they are easier to take from work. Non-instructional days attached to holidays should be after the holiday

breaks not before. Staff will be more productive after the break. Several periodic 3 day weekends with the Friday or Monday off are a

great way for kids to have more relax time: it's a busy society. NIDs (non-instructional day) on the day after a break provides helpful

organizational time. Combining with a holiday makes it easier for full time working parents to

take vacation time to cover childcare If it's a long break - or even a short one - and I want to get out of town so

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staggering them would be great for a combination of at home and away holidays

If they are all attached to long weekends it makes it harder to take a personal day attached to a long weekend

Although as a parent I prefer them attached to a long weekend, I am concerned that this just allows teachers to use these "paid" work days as extra holidays. The abundance of non-instructional days dramatically impacts the ability for teachers and students to get into a rhythm in the classroom and engage in their studies as every other week is a "short week". It's also exceptionally hard for working parents to manage all the random non instructional days.

Non-instructional days should be done during the summer break / spring break, there should not be extra days offs from school

Extended break, e.g.: non instructional days attached to a long weekend, make for much easier organization within the family and work. Also children, and teachers, benefit from a longer break rather than having 1 day off in the middle of the week.

The optics for attaching to long weekends is not good. Hearing lots of negative comments in the grocery store!

It was pretty hard on the kids to have a long spring break then come back for a couple of days just to get another 4 days off. Combining may be simpler for them and us trying to find childcare during these off days.

Non instructional days should take place over spring break or in July and August

NID's can begin and end earlier than class times and staff can leave early to enjoy a long weekend, too.

Non-instructional days should not exist for the purpose of transportation cost savings. Perhaps more of these days could be held prior to Labour Day or at the end of the year so there are not so many disruptions during the school year.

It's seems like a huge waste of resources (especially busing) not to book holidays with non-instructional days.

Parent teacher interviews should not be held before spring break or winter break. This discourages parents who might book holidays from booking. It appears that this is what high schools do, so that parents will not attend. Another issue is that some large high schools do not do online bookings for interviews and this is also a way to discourage people as waiting two hours does not accommodate seeing four teachers. Every middle school has online, why does Western not?

Extra-long weekends would be a nice bonus, it may reduce the amount of time parents take their kids out of school for vacations

Assists parents for holidays Longer breaks are a hardship for many families with young children. Makes sense where low attendance may be anticipated however, should

be able to split out if too close to last NI Day. Must also beware holiday combo resulting in staff not attending PD

This is a chance for teachers to plan, organize and enrich their teaching skills and should be kept seep rate from holidays.

It is nice to have some extra-long weekends for families to go out of town (Thanksgiving, Easter, May long weekend), but it is also really nice to

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have a day off here and there, in the middle of stretches where there's no end in sight.

There seems to be too many Non Instructional days Attaching non-instructional Day's to holidays makes it much re and more

tempting for parent to take students out of school for extended holidays. This is extremely stressful to students and relatively stressful for teachers. Especially at the high school level.

Non-instructional days should not be used as a method to provide cost-saving measures for transportation. There are far too many non-instructional days during the year and students should have more time spent in class.

None of the above. What about the cost I have to pay for child care because both me and my spouse work.

It is nice to have a "created" long weekend once in a while as well as having an extra day attached to an already set break.

Our family has more flexibility so we prefer having the non-instruction days throughout to give our kids breaks as they are in Div I and it's really tiring to have full days 5 days/ week. It's also nice to have longer breaks attached to long weekends, though not necessary to have these right after already-long breaks like Spring Break.

As an administrator I am disappointed at the number of staff that call in sick when a non-instructional day is attached to a long week end especially those who have young children and I suspect stay home to look after them. It is difficult to engage staff in PD when it is the day before spring break...everyone is wiped and not really 'in to' the PD.

Have PD days at long breaks around Christmas or before school starts in august.

I believe it gives the children a nice "mini-holiday" when they are combined, giving the students a refreshed feeling when returning

Non-instructional days should be considered break days. Teachers should use their vacation days for professional development and organizational days. Examination days are valid only for high school students. Parent -teacher conference days should be considered non-instructional days.

there are too many PD days I like when the PD days come after the holidays, especially Christmas

and spring break Please stop giving so many days off in late January and early February.

With the Board mandating January report cards, the Board has already interrupted one of the most productive times in student's learning (January to mid February). Non ID should be convenient for ALL schools, not JUST junior high and high schools.

I feel that there are too many non-instructional days. Non-instructional days can be attached to long weekends formed by civic

holidays such as Family Day, but should not be attached to holidays so as to not cloud the sprite of what those days represent (example: Remembrance Day).

There are way too many PD days. I would like Easter Monday off instead of CBE Easter - attaching it to

spring break.

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You should be using the word "used", not "utilized" in your last sentence. That is very poor grammar for an educational organization.

And are preferred to come before the holiday/long weekend day off There are too many non instructional days which is hard on working

parents. These should be in summer when students are not in school. However I didn't care for having 2 days attached to a holiday as it was

this year. It's challenging to have really meaningful PD right before a long break.

Too many non-instructional days, does anyone have close to 200 instructional days?

Again many families take mini holidays during these longer weekends and it lessens the likelihood of kids missing more class time if non instructional data are tacked on to long weekends or holidays

Not that it matters to me, but I know the teachers & school staff would prefer it be with holiday/long weekends.

Too many non-instructional days is sending the wrong message to kids about expectations in their future workplace.

Why are they not called Professional Development days? This has caused a lot of legal expense to amend a parenting agreement.

I do believe that there are too many non-instructional days and that it is disruptive when almost every is a short week.

I prefer the non-instructional days to be attached to a holiday and/or weekend. However I also welcome them evenly spread throughout the year.

When they are attached to long weekends they become prime choices for teachers to take personal days which can make PD days less effective when part of the staff is missing.

Attached to weekends but not to the longer breaks as that just makes it too long a break.

If it's attached to long breaks, we can plan accordingly and reduce money on childcare. The economy is such that we have to save every penny

Many extracurricular activities are cancelled on long weekends so it is a great opportunity to leave town.

I find it very difficult to have multiple days off in a month. There have been years when they are off for a Friday or Monday, have another day off a week later for holiday, then ANOTHER day off in the same month for PD or non-instructional. This coming year they are off for Thanksgiving, then the next Monday a week later. It is very disruptive to their learning routine, as well as home and family routine, time off from work, childcare concerns etc. It is easier as a parent to take days off together as opposed to sporadically multiple times a month.

When we were at school we never had PD days! Please find a way to have fewer non-instructional days. It feels like kids

are never in school. As a result day care fees for parents are going up and are required for more years.

It would be great if the specific school non-instructional days were listed on the calendar, rather than only on the school website. Otherwise they feel like a surprise day off as a parent. Course selection day?

Especially in spring and fall for camping season. Would like school breaks to match with the separate school board

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maximize uninterrupted school days Non-instructional days should always be AFTER the weekend though.

You will find staff have more energy after the weekend rather than after teaching and trying to get five days into 4. Thus if after weekend more impact on teaching and learning!

I think non instructional days should be mid-week and not attached to a weekend, I think non instructional days attached to weekends or even holiday long weekends, leaves too many teacher absences to happen, mid-week, there is more likely the day will be used more efficiently.

Teachers should spell each other off rather than taking all these days - so kids can be in school and working parents aren't so affected

If a month has no long weekends, then include one or two unattached non-instructional days. If a month has a long weekend, then attach the non-instructional days to the long weekend.

Keeping school weeks as consistent as possible would be better for routines. More regular 4 day weeks as opposed to infrequent 3 day weeks

There are NOT enough instructional days. The real question should be about increasing instructional days to 185,

I think it is easier for families to organize child care if it is attached to a regular holiday.

Non instructional days should be separate from holidays. PD days should be attached w/ public holidays to provide more flexibility

& effective for staff & families to organise their work, programs, or out town activities.

An extra day on a long weekend is nice but an extra day to the larger breaks (i.e. Spring and Winter) doesn't really make a difference and a long weekend elsewhere might be more useful.

Families are often going away anyways. It is great to have PD instead of missing students. Also teachers are able to leave and do their family time by 2:00 in the afternoon!

I like it being attached to a holiday but also think it's nice to split it up and have more 3 day weekends than having 4 day weekends.

Ok to attach non-instructional days to holiday/long weekend breaks if they are just for teachers, but NOT if they involve participation from students and families (e.g., parent-teacher interviews).

There are way too many "non instructional" days Parents tend to take their children on an extended holiday. No school

Friday, so they also take Thursday off. There are far too many non-instruction days. Again, what are parents

who work supposed to do??? I feel that attaching non-instructional days to a holiday, enables parents

to 'go away', and students would miss less school. Teachers should not be given non instructional days. Every other

profession is expected to be on the job, teachers are no exception. Working parents cannot afford to pay increasingly higher costs for child care on top of the large amount we are already paying for budding and lunchroom care.

I would prefer parent teacher interviews take place in the evenings and the children still attend classes during the day

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A longer break is a better rest for students. I am in the IB program and I know that I really prefer solid long weekends as they really allow me to get back on track if I'm behind on things, get ahead as need be, and truly relax.

Students get too much time off when NIDs are attached and end up with less retention and for most of them they lack resilience and end up taking time off to recover from their time off

I prefer this decision be made in the context of the whole school year, the placement of other non-instruction days in a month and what will best support student learning

I am concerned about of non-instructional days there are. It seems to be that my kids get one of these days every month in addition to another holiday there happens to be month. I did my entire schooling through CBE and I believe there was 1 or 2 of these days in an entire year. Why are there so many now?

I prefer not to have 3 non-instructional days in a row right before a holiday. I would prefer that day to be moved elsewhere.

This year's calendar that had 2 non instructional days before Spring Break didn't make sense, especially as we have only a day and a half at the end of the year to close up the school.

I would prefer that all non-instructional days (including professional development days) be grouped together. Thus allowing families to have two weeks at spring break and a "reading" week for students in the middle of the first semester. I believe this would allow for more in depth and profound professional development.

Look at what is best for instructional practice and meeting the needs of our students rather than worry about lengthening family holidays.

Need to take into account when both sets of parents are in full-time work. Attached to holiday/long weekend - some families go on vacation and

could miss parent teacher conferences. Not attached to holiday/long weekend could be disruptive (shorter weeks).

It is not always easy for parents to take extra time off for extended long weekends. I believe a balance is the most fair approach for everyone.

They could be held after school or vacation days. They already got too much spare time

It's confusing when it's color coded because we get black and white printouts so days off and classes resume are the same

A Friday is much easier for working parents to take off vs a Tuesday. Try to spread them out so that the long weekends are roughly evenly

spaced (this year following the xmas break there was a NID on Jan 9 would have preferred to see this day somewhere in June where there are 4 full weeks in a row)

They should be attached to a weekend ideally (i.e., Friday or Monday)--the only configuration that is sub-optimal is a mid-week day that still requires Friday attendance.

I have NEVER been able to contact a teacher on a NI day as they are NEVER at school and instead enjoying a non-gov't sanctioned extended long weekend. As a parent I well know these NI days are a farce and simply something agreed to between AI and the teachers union.

Having longer "weekends" rather than odd days off is better for families

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and less disruptive for learning (former teacher) I think not attaching with other holidays gives students more short weeks

and this help them unwind and not stress out. For our family (two special needs children) it works well for the children to

have significant breaks provided by extra days attached to holidays which allows us to 'get away'.

When they are attached to holidays families will often extend their holidays to the days before the NID as they see it as a short not important week. This has a negative impact on student learning.

Students and teachers have far too much time off during the school year. There are too many PD days that make it extremely difficult for working

families. There should be more thought to reduce these days or have them on breaks where children are already off such as spring break, winter break or summer break.

Having PD days on Fridays compared to Tues - Thursday makes it hard for child care.

Are all these non-instructional days really necessary? It's very frustrating for a working parent to constantly have to take a vacation day so teachers have a non-instructional day.

While we all like breaks, I value the breaks more together as every time students break and then return to school, it seems to take time to re-adjust to routines and remember what they learned. Less frequent breaks could be beneficial to maximizing student learning.

When it's not tied to parent/teacher conferences, it should be on a day leading up to a long weekend. For interviews, it should not be attached to holiday/long weekend break.

HIGHLY agree Additionally, have the days remain the same year over year - for

example, the first Friday of the month is a non-instructional day. Or always attached to Thanksgiving, Family Day, Victoria Day, etc....

See previous answer - NID are generally a nightmare for families to find affordable safe care.

Fewer non-instructional days. Less vacation for teachers. Maximize in class instruction and less reliance on homework.

The way this has been done in February recently has been great as it gives another long weekend opportunity for travel without the kids missing school. Bravo!

I like the long weekends, for us and other split families who travel to share children, allows longer visit

The frequency of non instructional days is frustrating, first 6 weeks of school, only 2-5 day weeks; Late Jan/Feb just as bad

However, I dislike when school opt to close say noon on Thursdays or the day before these breaks as I have to take cuts to wages to ensure childcare. I would rather schools take 1 full day off instead of two/three partial days

There are far too many PD days; this makes it hard for working families. Teachers can do PD during their time off over the summer, xmas etc.

Grandparents are quite far so extended weekends really do help for family visits so the kids miss less school.

It will be good if it could be attached to the holiday

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Parent Teacher conferences should not be attached to a long break as too many parents go on vacation rather than going to conferences. Teachers are then expected to make up the conference on their own time which takes away from time they can be planning and assessing school work.

Between October and April, I prefer that the non-instructional days are attached to holidays but during camping season, I'd prefer they weren't because I don't like to go camping on holiday weekends!

There are too many non instructional days within the calendar year. The teachers only teach half days on Fridays. the remaining day should be used as the non- instructional time.

I would like to see more full weeks of class per month instead of 1 or 2 full weeks. Make it 3 full and one short.

Teachers should be in school not out buying groceries. If they are not at school then they should not be paid.

Students have too many extra days off. WASTED DAYS - the Friday before a break (December and Spring

Break). These are wasted days for professional development of staff. It would be better if it were attached at the end of the break. It is wasted funds - keep kids instead!

Make sure that teaching staff work the full day as this is not being down at our school. They consistently leave early on non instructional days, have more long weekends and more time off. This is not acceptable

Most important factor is that they fall when schools need them - for early year professional learning, and throughout the year for interviews.

Having a longer Christmas break that includes non instructional days is workable. However at other points in the year this can be a challenge for child care purposes

There are too many non instructional days. There is no need for the amount of staff learning in an already too short school year.

End school in early June but start at same time of year I think teachers deserve their full break so it really bothers me when non-

instructional days are included in Spring Break and such. As long as teachers get their full week or two of holiday, I am happy.

PD/non-inst. is very beneficial when attached after spring break and winter break.

If the students receive a long weekend I feel as though the teachers should as well, teachers deserve a full long weekend without losing a day to a non-instructional day where they are at in house training etc.

We need less non-instructional days and more days in school for kids. I would strongly prefer that non-instructional days be grouped together

rather than spread out through the school year. Despite the stated objective, the current system provides no consistency for families. I would be ok with attaching them to holidays, e.g. making spring break 2 weeks long vs 1. I would also be ok with a stand-alone week or two of non-instructional days.

I prefer 4 day weeks. Please keep non instructional days to Fridays where possible I think it is nice to give the kids a few extra long weekends rather than

just adding to the ones they have; although I see the merit of both.

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Please eliminate all half days off (give 1 full day vs 2 half days)! There are way too many non instructional days. I would prefer to cut the

number of non instructional days into half, and have two full weeks of spring break.

Very frustrating to have them always attached to long weekends, many parents cannot get time off. I think there are too many of them.

It would be nice if teachers had a say before the year began as to what each of the days would be used for ie. staff involvement in decision making. This never happens and thus it is frustrating sometimes because better decisions could be made as to what day is used for what.

Teachers DON'T actually work on non-instructional days. Yes, they are physically present at the school, but many of them treat it as a day off.

Parents prefer this to occur so that they can plan for trips away from the city and child care considerations. Also provides natural breaks during the year. i.e. Spring, Long weekends etc.

Doing so allows the extraction of the financial benefits while minimizing psychological distraction

Why were thee 2 prior to Spring Break? Why in High School is there a non-instructional day at the end of the exams?

There are too many non instructional days. There are too many "non-instructional" days!!!! Teachers have enough days off during a year and there shouldn't be any

non instructor days at all, all studies conference etc for teachers can be during holidays and not extra days off, taxpayers money should be used wiser

Don't double up with two days on a holiday or long weekend. Sometimes not being allowed to take a day off around a long weekend

because a non-instructional day is attached makes it hard to take a short vacation.

Limiting the number of partial weeks in the year is preferable. I'm not a fan of this, because, as parents, we do NOT get an extra long

weekend and still have to work. But I understand why you do it. Long breaks (spring break) are long enough, they don’t need extra days

then. Spread out those days instead. How about all the schools have them at same time so my kids have same

schedule General survey note not addressed. Our school day was shortened to

accommodate busing, and outdoor recess became optional (up to the teacher), and lunch hour shortened. This does the students a HUGE disservice. More snack breaks (am AND pm, and more unstructured time helps them learn, don't take this away from them)

The less long the breaks, the better for the kids. I would prefer parent teacher conferences not be attached to holiday

weekends. PD days for teachers would be okay. Too many non-instructions days! It is nice to have an "extra long weekend" once in a while but a random

Friday or Monday off is still good. It's easier to plan child care when there is a long weekend. Long weekends yes, Christmas & Spring break NO I believe should take survey about the quality of education (study) which

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needs too much improvement. I would prefer more PD days to fall on Mondays, rather than Fridays It would be nice if we could put some of these days at the end of June.

Let's face it, the kids are done anyways! This could help teachers review the year (IPPs, etc) and also get ready for next year. I think going until the last week of June is ridiculous!

We prefer fewer longer breaks as easier to manage I am ok with the system non-instructional days which I understand that

Teachers need time to plan and work together. However, my school has 14 half-PD days on top of that! Is it really necessary? You said "Individual schools may have the ability to include additional non-instructional days, depending on the circumstances", what kind of "circumstances" are you talking about? If you should also think about before/after childcare at schools if you allow that kind of flexibility. It's 2017 and women are NOT expected to stay home to look after their kids and do homework!!

I would prefer some are not common- School based decision making for some days- for example schools with high numbers of Islamic students could choose to have one day on Eid.

There is way too many non-instructional days. Teachers' kids are never in the dayhome on those days, that makes me wonder if teachers are really working on those days...

When these holiday/long weekend breaks are longer, my child care takes time off as well - leaving me to have to take time off work for these days. A lose-lose situation for parents.

Parents who work can take Flex Fridays there are no Flex Mondays Tuesdays etc.

Put a bunch of non-instructional days into a second-week at spring break! This will make for easier handling of child-care! We can't remember which weeks have 3, 4 or 5 days and have had to find babysitters LAST MINUTE so many times!

Perhaps students should be given work assignment for these days. We go out of town every holiday week and it's so nice to have a non-

instructional day attached to these weekends, or it's not as worth it to make the drive.

There are seriously too many non instructional days. It is extremely ridiculous. Make the days for the teachers after school ends in June

it is sometimes difficult to really engage in professional development with staff when day attaches to a long weekend, etc.

Although it would be nice to get extra long weekend, I think the teachers should not be forced to work when students are off on 4day weekends. Us sometime hrs for parents to take 4 days off

Too many professional days..why is that????? Ten is too many. Actually when all the conference days, etc are added,

there are more than ten Reduce the number of half-days. Merge half-days to create a single full

day off. When the non-instructional days are attached to a long weekend, more

students are absent when their parents try to book holidays that extend into class time.

For working parents, having the holidays and PD days combined is a

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child care issue. I believe that consecutive shorter weeks are less productive for learning

since routine is disrupted too frequently. There are way too many of these days. If families want to get away it gives a better 4 day option. Some long weekends are more important than others. For example

extending Thanksgiving by one extra day is okay, however as many employers (including mine) do not have a statutory holiday on Remembrance Day, an extra long weekend would be problematic. Easter is equally problematic because it shifts between March and April. Taking Easter Monday as a non-instructional day is problematic from an out of school care perspective as many daycare providers also take the time off.

Teachers can use the day for additional holiday if they are using other personal time for the duties typically used for instructional days.

but we would prefer fewer non-instructional days I think that 3 day weeks (long/holiday weekend combined with NID)

should be avoided always - 4 day weekends are very disruptive. Non instructional days should occur before or after school closes for

holidays and NOT occur during normal semesters Definitely preferred to be attached when the alternative is to put one on

the following weekend instead - would rather have a 4-day weekend instead that two back-to-back 3-day weekends

Do not like it when parent teacher interviews are just before a break. If the interview involves making a plan the plan should be implemented right away before the teacher forgets. Plus, the kids are motivated after parent teacher interviews because of all the positive comments and then they cannot see their teacher for so long so all that benefit is lost.

Some months don't have a holiday weekend and having a non instructional day on those months is a good idea

I think there are too many PD days or non instruction days, it is VERY inconvenient when they attach them to the week before spring break. The kids do not need to be out of school for more than one week. I think Spring break is unnecessary and should not be in the school calendar

Attaching conferences to a long weekend makes it difficult to book mini holidays over these breaks, at our school many teachers had to accommodate early conferences because families were going away.

Sometimes it feels like we never have full weeks in school - hard to stick to schedules and routines (grade 1)

Lovely to get a real break. As a family that leave the city for holidays, it's wonderful to have the non-

instructional days attached to make for an extra long weekend My spouse is a teacher so the NI days just take away from family days off

for us if they are with holidays There are SO MANY non instructional days! Prefer NI days to be after winter and Spring break as opposed to before -

more effective for staff org or PD purposes. It is extremely difficult to manage non instructional days for childcare

when they fall during random Fridays. It is easier to find childcare or take time off work when it is preceded by a holiday.

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Longer breaks are always better. DO NOT put a non-instructional day for parent-teacher interviews the day

before a holiday/long weekend. It completely messes up the ability to get away for the long weekend. And don't put the interviews just before Spring Break...won't likely attend if you do that.

I feel for the value of the non-instructional days it should not be attached to a holiday where the teachers will be more focused on the holiday instead of learning/doing their jobs

I have never been golf (sic) that Non instructional days could be used for parents and teacher meetings

I like the conferences booked before spring break, otherwise, they should not be attached to long weekends

As long as the extra day is attached on the Friday preceding a Monday stat, this works for me. If it was attached on a Tuesday after a Monday stat it becomes hard to manage with work commitments.

When NID's are attached to holiday weekends, there is an opportunity for us to do a longer family-related activity (e.g. travel to visit grandparents)

What is the purpose of analyzing holiday/long weekend breaks in connection with non-instructional days? How are the needs of students considered when scheduling non-instructional days? How are factors such as student burnout and external factors that affect the conditions or optimal learning analyzed in connection to school schedules? It seems that the CBE has the opportunity to conduct a broader environmental scan and to make better decisions. It further appears that the CBE had the opportunity to more closely consider its most important and most vulnerable stakeholders - the students - when making decisions.

There should be no more than 1 non-instructional day per month. If there is a spring break or winter break, there should be ZERO non instructional days for that month.

No PD days right after winter or spring break please. � I've really enjoyed having long weekends as a family Non-instructional days within 1 week of a holiday or break should without

exception be attached to the break When they are not attached, child care becomes a nightmare for 2

income families which is pretty much the norm nowadays You've done well so far! It is nice to have non-instructional days stand on their own, it provides a

nice day off for the students that are outside statuary holidays and long weekends. it is a great opportunity for parents to schedule dentist/doctor appointments.

I feel those days should be all put together in one lump to create another big break in maybe February

Professional learning should be done outside of the school calendar (say 1 week at end of year). Non instructional days for P.T meetings make sense as half days mid week. Cost saving measures for transportation should not factor into these decisions.

I recall being told that half-day Fridays are also used for Professional Learning. Why are teachers getting non-instructional days at least once a month plus every Friday afternoon. I understand having non-instructional days 2-3 times a year for PT conferences but it seems to be getting a bit

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out of hand with all of the 'non-instructional' days. 2 non-inst days in Sept just after kids return was not needed. 2 non-inst days in December right before the Christmas break was a bit much. A non-inst day before the 2 Teacher Convention days also seemed a bit of over-kill. 2 more non-inst days before March break and then 2 more at the end of the school year? Why so many when you also have half-day Fridays? Those are just the 2 day non-inst days. This is not even counting the 1 day PD days.

Or more specifically, a combination is acceptable. I don't agree with non instructional day It would be better to have these in group, even two days (e.g. Thursday

&Friday of the same week) every couple of months rather than one a month. Easier for childcare planning and also allows staff to do more extensive staff training/development

Too much of non-instruction days are there. I'm speaking for my children on this one and I agree. Random days are sometimes the hardest to plan child care. Make a long weekend longer!! Makes a nice long weekend for family time. Sometimes feel like the odd

PD days are too many This way families like us can take longer camping/visiting holidays. I like that we can take a "mini-vacation" thanks to extending breaks in the

school calendar. It helps us reduce the number of days that our children miss in the year.

This way staff can take unpaid time or personal day and no sub would be needed therefore saving $

I find most PD which are attached to holidays are ineffective because low energy and interest in the day.

This does, however, encourage staff members to see NID as an extension to holiday periods

Distribute long weekends, instead of clumps and stretches with no holidays.

It should be the way it is now I feel there should be fewer non instructional days. Again, for family time or to be able to go away for an extra long weekend

is nice! Good for teachers too as they work on the non-instructional day so to have it attached to a long weekend gives them an extra day (and students two)

No matter where they are placed working parents still will need to work so child care will always be an issue on days like this.

Minimize the number of intermittent day off cycles and works out better for planning child care.

Far too many non instructional days. 2.5hrs/day after school is ample. No comments. It is very helpful to have a non-instructional day attached to the beginning

or end of the winter break. It seems to be common practice with spring break and this is also helpful. With long weekends, it is not in fact always preferable. Thanksgiving and the May long weekend being the exceptions because people tend to travel on those weekends.

Please keep these days to a minimum. Parent interviews should be scheduled in evenings to avoid missing school days.

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As a teacher (and parent of two CBE children) I wish there would be some allowances made for teachers on PD days, specifically before holiday periods. Some schools insist on keeping with regular school hours but others will allow 5 working hours and an early "dismissal" time for teachers which allows us to enjoy holiday weekends too (and perhaps allow for travel time if travelling for the holiday). Could this be available to all schools and staff? (i.e. 8:00 AM to 1:00 pm)

Parent conferences should not combined with holidays as many people will go on vacation and miss conferences.

Group them together so there is a week off each semester like other school boards do. There would be fewer students missing school for vacation days that way.

Again, this is less about me as a staff member and more about how many students are absent either the Friday or the Tuesday prior to a long weekend.

There are far too many non-instructional days. It seems like the kids are only going to school part time.

Non instructional days for professional learning for staff, appeals and organizational work should not be scheduled during the learning year for students. Teacher learning and organizational work should not take away time for students learning and should be scheduled for teachers to take outside for the students learning calendar i.e. summer, spring and winter break. CBE has a huge administration and should do this work to allow teachers to teach and not organize that's why you have administrative and management staff.

I see no need for 10 Non-Instructional days as it eats into the time I have with my students.

Especially after winter break. It is glorious to come back to a day to prepare.

There are too many non-instructional days as it is. These should be moved to the summer and unless for teacher conferences.

May as well make a longer weekend for a long weekend. Probably easier for parents to take an extra day off to look after their kids for a long weekend than having to take a day off a couple of weeks later....

My actual preference is to limit the non-instructional days to a total of 3 in a year. Having 10 is beyond ridiculous and places an unfair financial burden upon those who have to pay extra for day care!!!!

Gives the kids a nice brain break - much appreciated Reduce these days i.e. make them part of march break or Christmas

break Gives the students more frequent breaks. In the last week of school days in June, Could you please combine the 4

half days into 2 full days?? Absolutely attached I realize that I chose to be a teacher, but I hate not being able to enjoy a

long weekend like the rest of the world does, as I have to come back to work.

These days are far too many, especially when individual schools tack on even more days off school. While I understand the guidelines for instructional hours are well established, but it seems like my junior high

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child rarely goes to school for a full week, and now often is out Thursdays at noon when there is a non-instructional day on a Friday. It makes me question the value of the education he is receiving. I know of no other career that gets that many days for career development or "desk time."

With the exception of parent teacher conferences - they should not be scheduled right before or after spring break which seems to be the case recently. Non instructional days are good to combine with holidays as long as it is not a long holiday such as spring break or xmas break, as folks often add days before or after the break to extend their vacation.

I think if the students have their non instructional days spread out more, rather than having concentrated breaks, it might be more effective to remain engaged and focused on school work.

This would lessen the amount of short weeks I think it is easier for parents to plan alternative child care when they are

together than it is to do an isolated day here and there. They need to be evenly spaced out throughout the year. September -

December feels full of days off, but not so much March-June Then when there is a long weekend we can truly be off, not coming in for

an AM Absolutely attached... easier to plan for vacations & saves on child care

when you can use it a family vacation long weekend - rather than having to use up one vacation day to watch the kids, yet 1day is not long enough to go anywhere on vacation. Combining blocks of days off allows for better more efficient use of parent work vacation days..

Too many non instructional days per school year. Very few other industries have the large number per year. Especially in the current economy.

Enough breaks and holidays already considered, moreover, where to put the child when parents should go to work?

I would prefer non instructional days to be NOT on a Friday, but following the long weekend (Tuesday) otherwise not attached to the long weekend

Provided it does not interrupt their classes. When we have a break (i.e. teachers convention in February) it makes sense. To have an extra break in February would be taxing for childcare.

As long as the kids are off you may as well attach it to a holiday or long weekend

I think there are too many non instructional days in the school year, perhaps you could cut back on 3 or 4

Too many non-instructional days!! A combination of the two approaches is great, but when attached to

holidays/long weekends it allows for families to go on holidays/vacations without having to pull students from school

I hate that there is a day at the end of January and then the weird days off for teachers convention and family day- put it all in one week and give the kids a full week off. It's impossible to find child care or plan anything with 2 days off one week and one off the following week!

I love how teachers' convention is buttressed against Family Day weekend. But I can see how teachers would hate that so I think a combo is best.

To give teachers rest!!

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I am not sure whether non-instructional days should be attached to a holiday or not. There have been many times where I've gone to the school to speak with a teacher and they have not been in or working. It benefits the student to have the extra day, but I don't think it's right when the teachers aren't there working.

The amount of non instructional days is excessive! I am a child of 2 retired teachers and am shocked how the number of schools days and hours have been reduced over the years. Most professions don't allow catch up days. You do your work when it's required. Especially when you gave 8 weeks of holidays in the summer. Reduce theses non instructional days.

Not all holidays/long weekends are universally recognized for families with working parents, forcing family members to take time off to cover those days. When a non-instructional day is added this can mean that a family is taking 2 days of vacation, just to cover school closures. For example, I do not get Alberta Family day as a holiday, so I have to take other forms of leave for 3 days, around teachers’ convention, and I cannot always, operationally be away from my work for that many consecutive days. For children, back to back short weeks, and 4 day weekends can disrupt usual routines both inside and outside the school.

Would prefer non-instructional days be used for the 3 days before the teacher convention in February in combination with Family Day. This way families can take a vacation at non peak times (ie: spring break or Christmas) without their kids missing school.

This would allow more family vacation time on non-peak times of year without missing a lot or any classes.

Attaching to long weekends creates longer stretches of days out of school which is hard some younger kids to readjust.

I think our kids should be at school more period as in April they only attend 12 days when we have to work 20+ days.

It would be best to limit use of attaching non-instructional days to holidays. For working parents, it is very difficult when these days are added to lengthy breaks such as Christmas.

It’s nice sometimes to just have a day off especially in spring/early summer when the days are getting nicer.

Easier to take short breaks from the city when there are more time clumped together. This also works better for being able to babysit working friends kids

Again, I think it's better if families take vacation, they are not keeping their child off school or returning early only to have a non-instructional day the next week.

Working parents have to find alternate care making it very difficult The sheer number of PD days in this school district is ridiculous. After a

few of these a year, the overall value declines and you end up creating a massive onus on parents to find child care. All working parents I know are shocked by the volume of these

It is easier for our family to schedule 3-day weekends versus 4-day weekends.

I wish Easter Monday was consistently a day off, rather than given if attached to spring break or a day during spring break "in lieu of" if spring

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break falls at the end of March. This would provide consistency for families AND staff.

Balancing them out to give breaks at times children are burning out can be considered - maybe skip the September non instruction days and put them in May?

There were only 3 non-instructional days when I was in school. 10 is too many.

This allows for travel time to really use the holiday to its fullest. I'm fine with them being attached, but 2 attached to a break is excessive

and unnecessary. Why are all staff having these days off at the same time? Why aren’t staff

learning days staggered to limit non-instructional days. My kids are barely in school I find.

Non-instructional day should be taken during already scheduled holidays, such as winter, spring or summer. The same applies to the annual conference. Children spend too many days not at school.

It does not matter when these days off occur for us. Just because there is a long weekend, does not mean we will be able to take extra time off to be with the kids.

More Instructional days. Seems like kids are always off. When my daughter was in Elementary, I found there were way too many

Fridays / non-instructional days off that were not used as time for P/T conferences. This adds pressure to childcare arrangements and increases monthly fees. Non-instructional days should be used for p/t interviews.

I prefer fewer NID. It is expensive to find childcare for each NID, especially when there are several children. We have limited vacation days!

PD days should be completed in the summer. Non instructional days used for parent teacher interviews should be attached to long weekends where possible,

I did not appreciate a student led conference on Easter Monday. Christmas and Easter are a part of Canada and it should be celebrated as such!

Too many PD days. Give me a break. Teachers taking advantage. There are way too many of these non instructional days it is ridiculous

that CBE has so many more days than other school boards Many People would like to go out of town for short trips being that is it a

holiday/long weekend but can’t due to obligations to have at the school. Conferences should be evenings through a regular week day.

As a parent prefer to have NI days attached to holidays. As a tax payer I prefer not to have NI days attached.

I don't feel like my children do enough hours at school. Between all the half day classes and PD days I don't know how they get in 180 hours. I would like to see the min hours increased to 200 hours of instruction time.

Again this simplifies childcare arrangements if these are grouped together.

Working parents have to arrange for care or take vacation days no matter when the children have a non-instructional. I think the kids would enjoy

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having more short weeks than to have fewer (but longer) long weekends. There are way too many of these days throughout the school year which

adds a lot of pressure and stress on working parents. So many Calgary families don't have extended family living here. These

extra days attached to long weekends make it possible to travel to visit family. It is also easier for working parents to plan time off.

Longer breaks allow parents to do more with their children. There are entirely too many non-instructional days. Why can’t some of

the non-instructional days be moved to take place before Labour Day when students are not in session or in late June? It is unrealistic to think that parents can accommodate their children having four day school weeks twice a month, plus teacher’s convention, plus scheduled winter and spring breaks.

Our family works shift work, weekends are sometimes work days so we have no preference. Long weekends are no longer a special thing for us. We can't afford vacations anyway! But I would like to see non-instructional days used for the benefit of continuing education for teachers.

Really cause my daughters teacher tells the students what she does on her instructional days… and it is far from work related

I feel there are too many non-instructional days. I would prefer shorter school days and fewer non-instructional days.

Where practicable A day after Halloween seems smart for all parties involved! Optics are that staff are not working As a leader, I find that Staff Association staff commonly request the non-

instructional day before/after a long weekend as a personal day. It limits my ability to call staff together for meetings and PD when a lot of them are away on that non-instructional day.

The non-instructional days should be determined more on timing within a semester to allow for timely interviews etc.

For younger kids in need of secondary childcare on non instructional days, having these days attached to long weekends or holidays causing issues as many dayhomes will close or not accept children on these days leaving parents struggling for childcare. As children get older and are able to care for themselves (junior high on) it doesn’t really matter.

Although I am aware that it is convenient for families to extend the long weekend I am also very aware that staff is unmotivated at work and often consider this day an extension of their own long weekends. Schools are often vacated very early on PD days attached to long weekends.

Extra long weekends are hard on working parents. I cannot believe the amount of days this happened this year, my daughter was in kindergarten and I was shocked with the amount of non instructional days

This is a must!!!! Everyone gets really tired and those students are SO busy it gives them time to catch up!!!

I would like system wide PD opportunities to be limited to 5 specific non-instructional days a year. It is extremely difficult to plan whole school work when opportunities for only some of the teaching staff to be involved in PD happens. While I appreciate the subject specific PD offered, because not all staff is involved, it can be a challenge to plan PD for the

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remaining staff. Further when you want to do full staff PD a number of times a year that focuses on goals in the school SDP, having to deny staff subject specific (or other large scale like Indigenous Education Strategy work) PD is not ideal.

Parents less likely to attend parent conferences on a holiday weekend. High schools need flexibility to use NI day for events such as graduation.

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Question 6: Regarding the placement of non-instructional days, I prefer: -Non-instructional days should take place after long holiday weekends (example: when holiday falls on a Monday, the non-instructional day will be on Tuesday). 8.8% -Non-instructional days should take place before long holiday weekends (example: when holiday falls on a Monday, the non-instructional day will be on Friday). 51.44% -A combination of above 26.06% -No preference 13.7%

I prefer them to be back to back Don't attach it at all I like to take advantage of travelling as much as possible on long

weekends it would be advantageous is the non- instructional day was on a Tues as my kids have half days Friday so we could leave Friday afternoon/evening already

i would actually prefer the balance of non-instructional days be placed around spring break, winter break, and getting the kids out of school earlier in June to maximize our short summers.

Fridays are already half days so families can get a head start on their travel

Easier for working parents. Your available responses do not support my response above. It feels to me that students are out of school for non instructional days

too often. Either way could work. Tuesdays are less conventional, however

would make leaving town on road trips more desirable to avoid traffic (just not as easy to fit working parents schedules).

This is difficult to answer if you do not think non-instructional days should be combined with long weekends. This may be difficult for working parents.

Having a non-instructional day after a long weekend makes it difficult to coordinate schedules with my husband, who would normally receive that day off (in the case of Easter Monday, for example). It means that our holidays are always cut short due to my schedule.

In general, the workplace can be better arranged over a day at the end of the week. Obtaining a day in the middle of the week is much more difficult for a working parent.

Varying the day of the week of non-instructional days helps with service delivery from outside of the school, ensuring it is not always schools scheduled on a given day, for example Mondays or Fridays, that are missed when there is a noninstructional day.

Staff is more rested Non instructional days should be covered by extra staff instead of no

students in the schools The kids have too many non instructional days in my opinion. More

school is needed.

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Mixing it up a bit would be good. Teachers are often parents too. They should be able to enjoy a long

week-end, or a spring break, then perhaps attend a non-instructional day after the holiday.

I would like to know how many teachers miss the non-instructional days when they are on a Friday? What is the cost to the CBE with time off to look after children and sick days on long weekends? As well, with all of the early dismissals on Fridays, why do we need to take these days off?

There should be childcare planned around our modern work culture. It is difficult for parents who must work to be with their children

The bottom line with all of this... We are focusing too much on homework...and too much time "IN" school! There is lots of good research to confirm this. But we also need to get back to basics and not dumb down the curriculum. Children need to be allowed to fail. This current approach isn't working...

I believe students would benefit from staff having a NI day before a teaching day so knowledge can be applied next day; not after a few days delay

As a working parent, childcare is easier to obtain for Fridays vs Tuesdays

4 day thanksgiving break is important, a full week would be better. The CBE is far too concerned with maximizing time away from school.

Why don't you have a question asking us if we agree with the excessive amount of non-instructional days in a calendar year, then this would be a useful survey. Why should my kids miss a day of school so that teachers can organize themselves? No other job provides time to organize, this is part of being an adult and able to sustain a job. As well, my school sent home a letter talking about the importance of consistent scheduled early dismissal days citing research from 1992. It is 2017 and quite pathetic that you are basing decisions on research from 25 years ago. This certainly decreases my confidence in what the CBE is pushing on parents.

None of the above. Not at all as I as a parent have to end up paying for child care because of these "Non-instructional days"

I REALLY love the shortened Fridays in the regular schedule through the year. Fridays off are great.

Again it is difficult to engage some staff when it is attached to a long weekend. I much prefer if it wouldn't be attached to a long weekend.

I find there are too many no instructional days. Quite often a half day before the non instructional day is also included. This is ridiculous

This helps accommodate families whose parents may already have a Friday off and allows for more family time

All these options just keep students away from school. It is unfair to working parents. There should be some mutuality of school days and overall working days. School staff have become an elitist social group with too many privileges.

Again there are too many PD days. Just a general comment, but it seems that my kids are out of school a

lot. I find it frustrating that they're off for a bit, go back and then their

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off again. Too many days off in my opinion. I feel that there are too many non-instructional days. Staff still in "work-mode" prior so more accomplished and school

buildings are always so cold after long weekends. Monday or Friday as the non-instructional day depending on the

holiday Because many schools have a shortened Friday, less instructional

time is lost Not in this survey (but should be) - with regard to Fridays...please

eliminate early outs!! A regular Friday, alternating with every other Friday off would be preferable to an early out every single week. The half days are a ridiculous waste of time, money, & resources (transportation for example).

Before long holiday weekends aligns with my spouse's designated days off at work and works better for family reasons

Easter Monday should be a holiday. Definitely after a weekend. We find it much more relaxing as a family

to have the PD or Org on the Monday. No rushing back etc. See my last comment. These should be in the summer when students

are on break (not teachers). Why are half day instructional days counted as a full instructional day? Non instructional days should be a Friday as this is only a half day

anyway and therefore less school hours would be missed. Either is preferable to non-instructional days not being linked to

holiday long weekends. I know this survey is not about exams, however, it would be great if

students didn't have a 3 week "break" in January and June. Would like school breaks to match with the separate school board Always after if you want more refreshed and less tired staff, thus more

able to engage in the professional development etc. which is so important and worthwhile. Also, it is very energizing to start the week with a non-instructional day and then move into the week with the fresh learning and ideas still on one's mind. Much better for teaching and learning!

prefer zero non-instructional days as these are a childcare nightmare for working parents

Non-instructional days before long weekends are not as productive as those after the long weekend.

Friday's should be full days with a schoolwide activity in the pm. Students should not be watching Disney movies on school time. I can't believe I have to write that...

Prefer 185 instructional days Noninstructional days should not be combined with holidays Usually, short day on Fridays in High School, so I guess Friday is less

impact for those high schoolers. I think the goal should be to avoid or minimize 3-day weeks. Definitely prefer the Friday. Much easier for planning activities. I don't know of a single working parent who works M-F who finds it

easier to take the Tues off work than the Friday. PLEASE consider what works for families and not just teachers! In my opinion, there are

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SO MANY MORE non-instructional days that parents must provide child care for now than in previous years.

Your survey is flawed. I would prefer non-instructional days NOT be attached to long weekends and yet you're asking me to answer about a preference of before or after. There is a tool in survey monkey that would have allowed me to skip this question based on my previous result.

Already having half day Fridays, using that half day for PD, it would seem more beneficial to use the non-instructional day at a different time, giving us the half day Friday and then a full day that next week.

Mom instructional days make the teachers appear lazy. If other professions want a PD day, you are denied, teachers aren't any more special than other professions,

Teachers take a lot of time off - I counted 12 days from January to June not including statutory holidays. Childcare costs to mitigate this are making private schooling economically viable. Is this your intent?

WHY ON EARTH DOESN'T THIS SURVEY INCLUDE A QUESTION ABOUT CREATING A 5 DAY BREAK IN CONJUNCTION WITH FAMILY DAY AND REDUCING AUGUST BY 3 DAYS? MOST SCHOOLS ONLY HAVE HALF DAYS ON FRIDAY ANYWAY? THIS IS AN EXAMPLE OF THE CBE PRETENDING TO ASK FOR PUBLIC INPUT BUT IN REALITY LIMIT THE QUESTIONS TO SUIT THEMSELVES. SHAME ON YOU!!!!!!!!

NIDs should not be attached to long weekends. PD is not as effective for teachers and PT Interviews have become less well attended

Not on, after, or before long weekends There are too many days off for teachers and students along with late

entries on Fridays, it gets a bit ridiculous. Also what is with the 5 day break for a Teacher Convention in February. Teachers get the whole summer off, can't they do professional development then?

I prefer this decision is made in the context of the whole school year, the placement of other non-instructional days in a month and what will best support student learning

I feel I am more effective beginning of the week. Better work mindset when you know students will be in front of you the next day.

Thank you for this opportunity. What I would like to add is a true preference for consistency in start /end times from year to year. Please stop changing it every single year ...

Having it before means some people leave early/treat it like an extra holiday day

I find that if it is before the long holiday, I am not in the mind set. If it is on the day after the holiday, I feel refreshed and it helps me refocus back to my work and helps prepare me for my teaching goals.

Too many missed Fridays. I take preference to non-instructional days landing on Fridays, as I can

take time off work on the occasional Friday as required. I appreciate that for some, their day off might be the Tuesday. If balance of both is required, I'm okay with it; but prefer them be before long weekends.

I just said that I didn't want them attached, so this question is irrelevant for my preference isn't it?

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See #5 Non-instructional days should not be attached to holiday/long

weekend breaks on every occasion Same question as #5 see answer for #5 Many schools have a shortened day or early dismissal on Fridays.

When NID/PD are scheduled on a Friday, the amount of time spent on PD is also shortened to reflect the early dismissal as well.

When a holiday falls in a Friday the non-instructional day should be Monday.

Ideally they'd always be on Fridays. Also when on Friday, the Thursday should be a regular school day. Non-instructional days and early dismissal are challenging for childcare when they are scheduled any day other than Friday. We're used to Friday being different.

Everyone wants a Friday off, not a Tuesday! For working parents it is easier to take a Friday in combination with a

holiday Monday Under no condition should NID be combined with long weekends.

Then parents have to fight with everyone else to get an extra day around long weekends. This causes lots of conflict.

Fewer non-instructional days. Less vacation for teachers. Maximize in class instruction and less reliance on homework.

That seems the norm and suits us fine. No around long weekends at all That good There should be less non-instructional days. These days should be

utilized as instructional days to provide more teaching time to the students.

Let the family member enjoy their long weekends. The should never be placed by a long weekend, Parents need less non instructional days and longer days k-6. The

economy would do better if parents didn't have to juggle child care. Have teachers teach core subjects and fill other time with Brownies, soccer practice, music lessons, do when families are together it can be quality time. The current system is designed for two parent families with only one bread winner. The system is dated and needs to be revived to reflect modern needs.

I would love to see some of these no instructional days combined to offer a week long break in November, possibly combined with remembrance day

It is best to avoid 3 day weeks. It is too disruptive to the routine. End school in early June but start at same time of year See above. Group non-instructional days together. After might work better for families who juggle who can get time off

prior at work places. I think there are too many of them. See above. The BS that occurs in June watching movies and other wastes of

instructional time should be used more efficiently rather than start school before Sept long weekend. At this time June is a waste of time.

By providing Non instructional days on Fridays before holiday Mondays reduced instructional time is achieved if schools have early

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dismissal on those Fridays. Also doesn't break a week into a short 3 day component.

This should reduce psychological distraction There are too many non-instructional days As above, enough free days, teach the students and if teachers need

conference or study time they can do it in the holidays... If winter break starts midweek, it would also be possibly a different

day! I also would like to see no more than one long weekend per month. It

seems like there are at least two long weekends a month. I also feel that 1/2 Fridays should not be allowed. Students these days are not in school enough. 1/2 day Fridays combined with 2 or 3 long weekends a month plus all the breaks ... kids are never in school. On that same note, instructional days should increase to 190 - 210 instead of 180 - 200.

I would prefer they not be attached to the long weekend. There should never ever be a late entry after these days. Please see question 5 above - I prefer that the day NOT be attached

to the holiday. There is no choice for that option in #6! It would be nice if spring break was attached to Easter weekend. Our school already piggy backs on almost every long weekend, so it

doesn't really matter whether it's Friday or Monday In spring, NIDs before the weekend. Fall/Winter, after the weekend.

(This is a family preference that accommodates camping in the spring, but avoiding icy Sunday traffic in winter)

Friday is already a short day for the kids. The less time away from lessons, the better. If the non-instructional day is on a Monday, the kids miss more instructional time than if the non-instructional day is on a Friday.

Not attached to long weekend Teachers are usually not in the best mindset for professional learning

after teaching all week. Further, if professional learning objectives were provided in advance, teachers would have the weekend to reflect on what is to come, formulate questions, and approach professional learning from a fresh perspective.

Many parents have flexible work schedules with occasional Fridays off. Having the day off school on a Friday makes the long weekend more suitable to a getaway.

But also work with day camps within the communities. This didn't jive with the day camps this year!


Similarly, if the holiday is on a Friday, the non-instructional day should be on a Thursday.

However, please see my comment in #5 Fridays are easier than Mondays to be off work and join the students,

and it affects activities less. I don't think they should be attached to, so neither before or after

applies There is way too many non-instructional days. Teachers' kids are

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never in the dayhome on those days, that makes me wonder if teachers are really working on those days...

There should be no non-instructional days. Kids should be in school. There is enough of a summer break to accommodate teacher planning.

Businesses are more apt to give you a flex Friday no other day of the week

The current guidelines on Easter Monday suggest that the traditional calendar should not have had a break for Easter Monday, because Good Friday was not during spring break. Even still with this rule Easter Monday is a non-instructional day this year.

I think the non-instructional days should be consolidated into a second week at spring break - this could be flex-time for teachers, either PD or organizational purposes PLUS it allows families to take their trips or even schools to have trips without losing class time for exam preparation.

Stop having non instruction days. Period. End of story. The kids miss too many days of school.

Why do they have to be long weekend only. I would LOVE non-instruction days to make up a second week at

spring break to provide flex-time for organizational and PD opportunities for staff and allow for trips to take place - whether family or school-based so as not to take away class time from diploma courses!

I actually prefer to reduce the number of PD days and release the children earlier in June

Less class time is lost if a Friday is used for a non-instructional day. There are way too many of these days It feels easier, as a working parent, to take the day directly before or

after a weekend, rather than what feels like a mid-week day (i.e. Thursday or Tuesday).

Friday is a better non-instructional day as my employer is more accommodating to take Friday's off whereas Tuesday off creates additional work pressures (the Tuesday after a long weekend is already tight time pressure because of the lost Monday.

Strong preference. I would strongly prefer that NID's are not combined with long

weekends at all. Non instructional days should occur before or after school closes for

holidays and NOT occur during normal semesters There are too many occasions where kids are not in school 5 days a

week, and if there is a long weekend then they get out early the day before in my opinion this needs to stop.

For those parents that have Fridays off having the non instructional days fall on a Friday is nice from the childcare aspect of planning. I liked that most of this year’s non instructional days fell on a Friday for this reason.

I think there needs to be less non-instruction days. When my daughter attended school in the US there were NO non-instruction days. The education system should be providing more education days for

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children, it is not beneficial for them to miss so much school. Friday's seem to be short days in terms of instruction, so I would

prefer that non-instructional days are on a Friday before a long weekend so that the kids are not losing a full day of instruction.

Teachers only work 1/2 days on Fridays anyways. Fridays should be full days.

NI on Fridays reduces hours less due to short Fridays. Makes it easier to keep our target hours.

As long as they are attached to long weekend I'm happy with either Friday or Tuesday

If it's before the teacher will not be focused on work I truly detest the late entry half days that our school placed following

long weekends. Whichever makes for the most consistent time off. For example

teachers convention would be better to follow family day and be combined with non-instructional days to allow for a full week off. thereby making it easier for working parents to arrange childcare

Maybe considering U.S. holidays as might be easier to get flights etc. If not at same times for whole time.

since i do not want non-instructional days attached to holidays/long weekend, i prefer either Monday or Friday

If you need so many then keep them on Fridays when those days are only half-days anyways throughout the entire year.

None at all Non instructional days should occur in the summer. There was nowhere else for me to comment at the end of the survey

so I am putting it here.... I think an important question to be asking is whether we are in favour of our designated school moving to a modified calendar. It is VERY difficult to find schools that are remotely convenient to attend that run on a modified calendar, and then of course there is the issue of those schools not being your designated school. There is a huge desire for more schools to move to a modified school calendar.

Just keep attaching them to holidays/long weekend etc. and I will be happy :)

Make two short weeks. Non-instructional days seem excessive I feel there should be fewer non instructional days. Placing them on Fridays results in broken weekends where split

homes exchange kids on Fri. None Non-instructional days should be limited to 2 per school year.

Currently way too many scheduled, which disrupts student learning. These days should be placed where it is most useful to the teachers,

such as a week prior to report cards. Currently, its weeks after when it isn't useful and convenient for parents.

Preferably these would be staggered to avoid becoming a 'high season' so that family trips and excursions remain reasonably priced and vacation days are easier to schedule at work to accommodate.

There should be far fewer non-instructional days.

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Need at least 2 non-instructional days at end of June. Ending on June 30 only is crazy.

There are too many non-instructional days and I know many teachers that do nothing on those days.

Hard to say, but perhaps employers prefer that their staff take a Friday off as opposed to a Tuesday.... hard to say -- regardless, parents need to take a day off from work to look after their kids (all ages need supervision) while non-instruction days occur.

There was no spot to comment on the timing of spring break so I shall add my comments here. "Spring break is generally held the last full week of March". Given that there is a 5 day long weekend in February for teachers’ convention/family day, but no long break between spring break and the end of the school year, moving Spring break into the first week of April would give students and teachers a slightly shorter last term. I can see this being appreciated by everyone because of the burn out towards the end of the school year.

My actual preference is to limit the non-instructional days to a total of 3 in a year. Having 10 is beyond ridiculous and places an unfair financial burden upon those who have to pay extra for day care!!!!

Friday are preferred as it is easier to take Fridays off (I think to a lot of people) and more people are more likely to not work on Fridays or work from home, for example.

Our school has early dismissal on Fridays so would prefer that was the day off. However, I strongly object to early dismissal on any day other than Friday. This is a childcare nightmare when randomly there is different school hours on another day of the week

Friday at our school (and many others) is a half day. It's kind of a joke already - what could they possibly learn in that short of a time - so let's have as few Fridays as possible.

Too many In the last week of school days in June, Could you please combine the

4 half days into 2 full days?? Non-instructional days on Mondays are problematic for working

parents. We might be able to take a Friday off, but Mondays are more challenging to be out of the office.

This comment is unrelated to the question but instead of every Friday being a half day I would prefer full days and every second Friday off

As long as the non-instructional day is attached to a holiday and not on its own in the middle of the week.

On non instructional days, parents are at work. Fridays are half day as per many companies’ regulations or its holiday every other week.

I would prefer the long weekend to include the Friday and Monday, regardless of which day is the holiday.

For those of us stuck with schools who have half-day Fridays, which is a complete and total waste of instructional time, these days SHOULD NOT be placed on a Tuesday ever! The children are already missing half of Friday, it only makes sense to give this as the day 'off' as opposed to the following week.

I find the number of non instructional days to be excessive and not necessary. I fail to understand the need for so many. I don't believe

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the CBE can justify this number. I understand it saves the CBE millions in busing. Saving $ on busing doesn't translate to best educational practises at all. I find it particularly interesting that a question regarding the number of Non instructional days wasn't included as part of this survey.

For families who use this for a mini-holiday it's nice if the non-instructional day falls after the holiday, less busy

Once again i believe there are too many non instructional days Too many non-instructional days!! Just not combined with parent teacher days off - it's a long weekend

so as parents we just leave earlier I am not sure whether non-instructional days should be attached to a

holiday or not. There have been many times where I've gone to the school to speak with a teacher and they have not been in or working. It benefits the student to have the extra day, but I don't think it's right when the teachers aren't there working.

We should give more time to student studies and less non-instructional days

I don't want non-instructional days to fall immediately before or immediately after long weekends . . except where they are used to create a continuous week of vacation time . . .

Would prefer non-instructional days be grouped together to create a longer time off, instead of random & multiple 3 day weekends.

Evenings or weekends like the rest of us have to. Re: Spring Break- Spring break should take place in April so children

and families can get out and enjoy time outdoors when the weather is more consistently fair.

I'd prefer my child to have two weeks with 4 days of instruction, than a week with only 3 days, just to keep a more even rhythm.

They should NOT be attached to long weekends The sheer number of PD days in this school district is ridiculous. After

a few of these a year, the overall value declines and you end up creating a massive onus on parents to find child care. All working parents I know are shocked by the sheer volume of these.

I prefer they not be attached to a long holiday weekend Non instructional days should not fall mid-week. We have sometimes

had them on a Thursday, which is hard for parents to accommodate. Does the fact that there are a different number of instructional hours

on a Friday vs. Tuesday not make a difference??? Having some days off early in the week works personally better for our

family schedule versus Fridays. The most important and obvious change is to sync with the Catholic

system. How long will it take for you to make this change? Since Friday is usually a half day at my children's school it's nice to

have a full Tuesday off. Have some non instructional days in the summer if they are that

important to teachers for learning but is before not the evening before the day off as people would sometimes like to leave town/plan a family event.

Non-instructional days should be always on Fridays. Keep

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consistency. We are preparing our children for life - with full-time jobs. There are too many days off and early dismissals in school.

Students have shorter days on Friday anyways. CBE seems to have way more non-instructional days than other

boards. This is difficult for some parents to accommodate. This question does not account for these days not being attached to

long weekends. There are way too many of these days throughout the school year

which adds a lot of pressure and stress on working parents. There are entirely too many non-instructional days. Why can’t some of

the non-instructional days be moved to take place before Labour Day when students are not in session or in late June? It is unrealistic to think that parents can accommodate their children having four day school weeks twice a month, plus teacher’s convention, plus scheduled winter and spring breaks.

The convention should be in August not February. A lot of doctor's offices are closed on Friday. Having Mondays off

enables my family to better schedule appointments to avoid taking more time off school.

THE KIDS ALREADY MISS MANY FIRDAYS, A TUESDAY WOUDL BE GOOD TO THROW INTO THE MIX.. IT SEEMS THE KIDS WITH SPECIAL THINGS (gym, library) always get short changed Fridays.

How about moving non instructional days to summer time when it doesn't affect students.

I feel there should be consistency between schools of non-instructional days. Every school seems to be different.

Overall the limitation of half day Fridays are preferred. The fact that the kids' school days are condensed (shortening lunch hour etc.) in order to facilitate staff professional development is serving staff over students' needs. My kids often come home saying they didn't have time to eat or had to rush thriving lunch in order to get some outdoor or spare time. This is not right and needs to be readjusted. Periodic half day Friday's is sufficient, EVERY Friday is VERY unreasonable.

Should not be attached to the holidays. I prefer Friday to Monday breaks. The question does not ask if the

holiday falls on a Friday... I would want Monday not Thursday. Teachers already find ways to extend their long weekends. It is easier for me to consistently take Fridays off from work to stay

home with my children - very difficult on Tuesdays! If we have to have non-instructional days attached to long weekends,

it makes more sense for it to be the Friday before. Fridays are typically lighter days for many reasons and having the Tuesday as the NI day would be more impactful to students.

Mid-week instructional days would be great. If the day is after the long weekend and staff were expected to report

'on time' for work it might make for a full work day. But families would probably prefer the day before to 'get a jump' on their weekend. You need to visit the reason for the non-instructional day.

Shouldn't be on long weekends. Why is this not a choice? Non instructional days should not be during long weekends

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Don't combine them. I would rather two Fridays off than a Thursday and Friday off.

In terms of childcare, Fridays are easier to take off work than any other weekday. There should never be 2 instructional days off in a row (like before Spring Break this year) and non instructional days should not be before a major holiday.

I would ask that the system decide which non-instructional days are set aside for system work (eg. work with specialists). Having different things offered at different types does not allow for a school to all be together on the same non-instructional day.

PD is FAR more effective with fresh teachers, do non-instructional days AFTER the long weekend.

Fridays tend to be shorter days for most high schools. Less instructional time is lost if students not in attendance on a Friday

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Documents

Calendar survey results and comments - Calgary Board of ... · summer weather in Calgary is short enough as it is, please give us that last long weekend before the kids have to start